2016 defeat: Quit media rants – NDC-UK

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) chapter in the UK and Ireland has urged members of the party to desist from running to the media to blame each other for the party’s 2016 electoral defeat.

According to the chapter, aggrieved members of the party should channel their concerns to the Kwesi Botchwey committee set up by the party to investigate the electoral defeat.

Since the defeat of the party at the 2016 general elections, several members of the NDC have been accusing each other of being the cause of the party’s fall.

The National Organiser of the party, Kofi Adams, who was campaign coordinator for the campaign, was accused of hoarding cash and other logistics meant for campaigning at the grassroots.

He has denied this allegation and described the decision of some leading lights of the NDC to openly criticise the actions of the party and some persons within its ranks as a reflection of their inexperience and immaturity.

Victor Smith, the NDC’s parliamentary candidate for Abuakwa North in the 2016 polls, has also been accused of squandering monies meant for campaign activities in the constituency ahead of the 2016 elections by Alhaji Dan Baba, a leading member of the NDC in that constituency.

Others have put the blame on former President John Mahama, who was flag bearer of the party in the last elections.

Further, Kpone Katamanso MP Nii Laryea Afotey Agbo has said members of the erstwhile Mahama government did not treasure the political power they had, hence their failure to work hard enough to win the 2016 elections.

However, the UK/Ireland branch of the party in a statement said resorting to the media is “not helpful” and would rather compound and complicate matters in the party.

The statement added: “NDC UK/Ireland chapter understands that members of the great NDC family feel aggrieved, upset, angry, and disappointed about the recent defeat of the 2016 general election. The scale and shocking manner of the defeat is what has prompted the national executive of the party to put in place the Kwesi Botchwey committee to investigate and find out from members and all interested parties the causes and reasons why we lost the election the way we did.”

“The committee is still in place and working, so the expectation is that anybody with any grievance or have anything to say will make a submission to the committee through the agreed and laid down format. It is rather surprising that some members including senior members of the party have chosen to go down the route of the media to air their grievances. Going down this route is certainly not helpful and will rather compound and complicate matters.

“It is on this basis that on behalf of the UK/Ireland chapter and on my own behalf as the chairman appealing to everyone to take a sober reflection, cease fire and rather go to the Kwesi Botchwey committee with any grievance and anything we have to say.

“What we need now is for us to re-channel our energies and rally behind the party's effort to regroup and reorganise. By all means let us talk, but let us do that within ourselves and to ourselves before we go out to talk to the nation as a party. We shall be back in power in 2020.”