Opinions of Friday, 26 May 2017

Columnist: Fuseini Abdul-Fatawu

The NDC neurotic & fixated campaign against Bawumia is an exercise in futility

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Those without short memories can recollect that Dr. Bawumia was the least of choices for the position of the NPP's flagbearer running mate ahead of the 2008 elections.

Most political analysts and pundits were expecting the NPP 2008 running mate to either be then MP for Salaga, Abubakar Boniface Siddiq or Hajia Halima Mahama.

Others expected Messr MND Jawula taking the spot. But out of nowhere and to perhaps surprise a lot, Nana Addo picked a relatively unknown person in political cycles, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

His choice of Dr. Bawumia didn't settle down well with all the party members and sympathisers. Nana Addo stood firm on his choice and the rest as they will always say, is history.

In the 2008 elections, Dr. Bawumia wasn't attacked that much. Most of the NDC's propaganda was against Nana Addo.

They accused him from being arrogant to him being a fake lawyer and many other unprintable lies and distortions. The worse of them was the one being led by Kofi Wayo saying Nana Addo indulges in drugs.

All these allegations were levelled without any shred of evidence. They did it and it perhaps helped them to deceive a supposedly gullible public with "short memories" to win the 2008 elections.

Then came the 2012 elections and again most of the lies and propaganda was against the personality of Nana Addo. This time though, the NDC had the added advantage of Professor Mills death which they capitalised on and used it to clamour for sympathy votes. The results of the elections tells us that it worked for the NDC.

We are now in the 2016 elections and the dynamics this time are totally different. The NDC have realised that people are now so fed up with their incompetence, very corrupt, clueless, uncaring and indecisive administration. They have equally realised that Ghanaians have had enough of their lies, mischief, distortions and malicious propaganda against Nana Addo. Kofi Wayo can no longer be used to accuse Nana Addo, Hassan Ayariga true colours of being a NDC mole in PNC is known by all and Fiifi Kweetey and the other babies with sharp teeth are now known by their true lying and deceptive colours. The NDC needed to find a new and innocent target to defame. And they found, Dr. Bawumia.

Dr . Bawumia have grown to endear himself to many people in the NPP and out of the NPP through his numerous lectures he has been organising. These consistent and honest lectures not only expose the weaknesses and failings of the current NDC administration but also propose feasible and simple solutions to the problems and challenges we face as a nation. A good government would have listened more to Dr. Bawumia. But unfortunately, the president Mahama led NDC government wouldn't take anything from him.

Instead of the ruling NDC government consulting him the more in the spirit of all-inclusiveness, they rather decided to attack and rebuke him. They tried organising counter lectures and they all backfired. The Vice-President then realised it would be a shame on the NDC if they don't respond properly to Dr. Bawumia.

To tame and silence Dr. Bawumia, the Vice-President raised our interest high by telling us that he is going to let Dr. Bawumia know that the economics he Dr. Bawumia has been lecturing is primary school economics. Little did we know that the Vice-President's statement was another NDC propaganda. Till date, neither the Vice-President nor the finance minister has come out to answer or debunk the 170 questions Dr. Bawumia asked them about the economy. Their attempt to use Fiifi Kweetey, Okudjeto Ablakwa, Felix Kwaakye and the other babies with sharp teeth to refute his lectures with propaganda, lies, mischief, distortions and defamations through the setting the records straight forum also backfired. Now losing focus and the debate on the best policy to rescue this collapsed economy, the NDC have decided to resort to the age-old tactics of slandering the truthful and honest person when you can't debate with him. This explains the insults and derogatory statements coming from the mouths of Koku Ayindoho and some of the NDC members. The NDC now don't know how to deal with Dr. Bawumia.

Besides, the words of Asiedu Nketia against Dr Bawumia goes deeper. He's saying the NPP is only using Dr. Bawumia to win the 2016 elections and after that dump him. He cited the case of late Aliu Mahama losing the NPP primaries even though he was the sitting vice president. What a weird analysis?

In fact some of these analysis or tribally-inspired politics beats my imaginations. The late Aliu Mahama was not abandoned by the NPP. If for nothing at all, he been Vice-President for 8 years was itself a good platform to serve his country. He campaigned against others during the NPP internal primaries and lost. The late Vice-President never complained to anyone he was maltreated or mishandled by the NPP. So why should the NDC think for us? Why must Asiedu Nketia try to always insult our intelligence? In any case, what did the NDC do to us from the three Northern regions after voting for them for 8 years? Is it the SADA create, loot and share or is it the taking away of fertiliser and fuel subsidies? Doesn't the NDC know we are mostly farmers? Why should the loving NDC, our beloved Northern brother and party, use our names as northerners to con, dupe and exploit the state? Why must they enrich themselves and their families leaving the three Northern regions underdeveloped and poor? Is this the NDC definition of love? Then that's a distorted and very wicked love!!!

Let's in a way assume that Asiedu Nketia is right, does that mean that the NDC has an agenda against people of Northern descent especially the Muslims? Why didn't the NDC handover or chose Honourable Mahama Iddrisu to take over from former president Rawlings after he serving the P/NDC for more years than professor Mills? Wasn't he very loyal to the cause of the PNDC and NDC governments? Why didn't the same NDC vote for Mahama Iddrisu in the 2006 NDC presidential primaries? Is it because it falls in the NDC's agenda of using Muslims and dumping them like rubbish after elections? We can't forget that it's around this same period that Fiifi Kweetey told us that no Muslim can be a president in Ghana.

The NDC must respect themselves and concentrate more on the policies they have to transform Ghana from its current hopelessness. We know it's not easy to see defeat staring you in the face and you'll be normal. That doesn't also mean that you must disrespect yourself by descending too low to make desperate and reckless tribally-inspired statements. That doesn't also mean you must descend so low and end up insulting people who have built respect for themselves. The NDC must think of our national unity and cohesion before and after the 2016 elections. The wind of change can't be stopped now by the NDC, In sha Allah. Nana Addo and Dr. Bawumia are clean and their positive and truthful vision for Ghana would, In sha Allah, come to fruition starting the 7th of January, 2017. No amount of lies, mischief, slander, malicious propaganda and distortions can prevent that....

I shall, In sha Allah, be back