In the past NDC 1 regime of President Rawlings there was NO DIFFERENCE between elected and appointed Constituency Executive members of the NDC. It was because the NDC was RECEPTIVE to opinions and suggestions and there was TOTAL COHESION and the NDC was very stronger then from 1992-2000. That was the team spirit we established for the party to move forward a midst Negative Media Reportage by the hostile private media. This writer was then a Miner but spent a lot of money in writing rejoinders to the “Ghanaian Voice”, “Crusading Guide”, The Statesman”, “Ghanaian Chronicle”, “Free Press” and in fact ANY private paper that attacked President Rawlings and the NDC – I was nicknamed a “Rejoinder Man” by the political opponents of the NDC and others even insulted my intelligence by saying that the Articles were always written at the castle and send to me in Obuasi to sign and then post it to the various media houses as my own write ups – what a terrible insult. It took the then Regional Editor of the “Ghanaian Voice” Mr. Kwabena Akosa Sarpong to visit Obuasi in 1996 and interviewed me, before the doubting Thomases and political opponents of the NDC then believed the story and further got to know that I don’t write under PEN NAMEs and I have NEVER set foot at the Osu Castle in Accra at all. I only visited the Gondar Barracks 5 times during the heat of the revolutionary PNDC era 1982-1984 when some money bags in Obuasi reported PDC executive members to the PNDC information center including this writer describing us to be “Smugglers and Corrupt men” and we proved them wrong totally with convincing evidence.
We will NOT have lived to tell our story to day if in fact the allegations of those powerful money bags were found to be TRUE, because the revolution ate its own eggs in order to succeed. Frankly speaking I worked my shocks off for the NDC party as well as several others without ANY reward up to date 2010. You see, in politics, you encounter people who are always AFRAID that you will OUTSHINE them, so they must gang up and destroy you through fat lies, rumours, character assassinations back bitings, half truths and outright fabrications in the Ministries and other corridors of power even including the Castle. Try as they could, they could NOT, and can never destroy or frame me up all these years because I am NOT an opportunist or a liar because I am always efficient and I excel in whatever I did and still continue to do because if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear at all. This has been my battle cry in the fight between my Constituency Executive members in Obuasi led by the chairman who are bent on destroying my hard won reputation but have been hitting the rock always.
THE OLD GUARDS
Some few government appointees and self-seeking constituency executives of the NDC always engage in name calling and bad mouthing cadres with the aim of compelling them to go into political hibernation and allow them to do what they like, as if the cadres did not campaign for the NDC to come to power but rather campaigned for NPP during the 2008 general elections. Because of extreme greed, these so-called New NDC members does not know that the NDC will collapse completely if they are allowed to run the affairs of the NDC alone without the OLD GUARDS whom they love to hate, because they are trying to operate outside the NDC Constitution. Personal Hurts Aside, I feel for the future of the NDC that is the main reason why I still continue to write and defend the NDC and damn the consequences. How can you claim to be an NDC member and brag that you don’t want to hear about Rawlings and his wife’s name?
You don’t want to hear the word cadre or the name of Nana Konady Agyemang Rawlings etc. Those who behave that way or all those who have that mind set MUST leave the NDC embloc and form their own parties and then go to Hell or Burn the sea if only they can do that because the cadres have come to stay in the party they sacrificed extremely to establish in 1992 and most of these foul mouthed later day saints parading as REAL OWNERS OF THE NDC were all sitting on the fence passively whilst we established the NDC party with “Charlie wotes” and returned with torn “Charlie wotes” up to now-2010. So if you are lucky to be given an appointment in the NDC with Profession Mills as the President of Ghana, do you try to destroy Rawlings and his cadres? As cadres, we must infuse some experience into the present unhealthy situation in the NDC and that is the team spirit we need to resolve in the party and move forward.
THE NKORANZA BYE-ELECTION 2007
There was a directive from the NDC National Headquarters in Accra by Hon. Ofosu Ampofo through Nana Fosuhene a staunch NDC party elder to the Obuasi Constituency Executive Committee to release me to go to Nkoranza and campaign for the NDC during the bye-election. Hon. Ofosu Ampofo was the former National Organiser of the NDC and now the Eastern Regional Minister.
Do you know what? I was given only GH¢6.00 to travel from Obuasi to Nkoranza by the Constituency Chairman. The money was NOT enough, but I sacrificed and went to Nkoranza only to learn that there are thousands of Northern settler farmers at that constituency. I set to work together with my other brothers from Wa in the Upper west Region and we used the Dagaarii and Wala languages to convince our Northern brothers to vote for the NDC.
However, when the NDC lost the bye-elections at Nkoranza, all the leading members of the NDC including all NDC MP’s left that constituency to Techiman for a crisis meeting leaving the party agents including this writer stranded at Busunya and it was only Hon. Baba Jamal the only National Officer who was at the Collation center for the declaration of the election results and he was being teased and mocked at by NPP leading members including Hon. Asamoah Boateng, a former minister for information during the NPP regime. The whole road networks at Nkoranza North are a feeder road which needs to be tarred.
When I finally arrived at Nkoranza town after the NDC lost in a pick-up driven by Hon. Yaw Boateng Gyan. I had no pesewa on me. I joined another pick-up driven by Hon. Tawiah Boateng, the Eastern Regional Organiser of the NDC to Kumasi and I dropped at Sofo line round about a suburb of Kumasi without a pesewa in my pocket but I had to go back to Obuasi.
I was hungry and thirsty, so I decided to walk from Sofo line to Sawaba another suburb of Kumasi to get lorry fare from my sister to enable me go back to Obuasi. On reaching her house, she had left for Accra whilst her husband who is my brother-in-law also left for Offinso. Once again, I had to walk on foot from Sawaba to the Bekwai round about, also a suburb of Kumasi on my way to the residence of Hon. Ohene Agyekum, the Regional Chairman of the NDC. It took me two and half hours to travel on foot from Sawaba to the NDC chairman’s residence because I was very tired, thirsty and hungry all because of the love for the NDC. I was given GH¢4.00 and I left for Obuasi. Today some seven executive members who have hijacked the NDC in Obuasi are bragging that I did nothing. See how wicked they are!
DISHONEST AND GREEDY CONSTITUENCY EXECUTIVES
Therefore, if today the NDC is in power and some dishonest and greedy executives in the constituency who imposed themselves on the people of Obuasi have ganged up to destroy me through wicked and false allegations all over the constituency as well as the Regional and National levels – I have to fight back and tell them point blank that they will never succeed in their bid to destroy me since they have already failed disgracefully because I was duely invited to Accra and I proved them wrong, however this does not mean that I have to leave the NDC to join another political party. It will never happen on my part at all. That is the cross we continue to bare as cadres in the NDC. What government needs is the know-how of people who are instructive, people who have the presence of mind and can easily smell opportunities and NOT people who don’t just talk BUT get things done.
The NDC won 8½ regions and instead of consolidating our grip on the nation by organizing massive public foras in the various constituencies nationwide and giving political education to the masses, what we are doing since February, 2009 to 2010 is that: - These people are Rawlings boys – These people are Mills boys and it is the Rawlings Boys who are the Enemies within the NDC, what Nonsense is this? The NDC is bigger than any individual in this country.
Aluta Continua
Clement Sangaparee
Municipal Organizer
United Cadres Front
C/O Box 32, Obuasi
E-mail: clementsang@yahoo.com
Distribution
All Media Houses
Accra