An Interview with Nyaho-Tamakloe

On Thursday 13 July 1995, yours sincerely, Editor of Ghana Review, interviewed Dr. N. Nyaho-Tamakloe, a member of the National Patriotic Party - the main opposition party in Ghana.

A request for an interview with Mr P.V. Obeng, Special Adviser on Govt Affairs was requested both via the Ghana Mission and Mr Obeng himself. The request was granted in principle. However, all efforts to secure a date and time for the interview has proved futile and after several telephone calls we have had to give up, at least for now.


We therefore bring you the "one-sided" interview from Dr Nyaho-Tamakloe.


Dr N. Nyaho-Tamakloe, a leading member of the New Patriotic Party and a co-founder of the Alliance for Change, the pressure group, said he believes there is a better alternative to the Rawlings regime which has been found extremely wanting in the administration of the country.


Speaking in an interview with Ghana Review in London, Dr. Tamakloe said all Ghana needs now is to get an alliance of democratic forces to present a united and coherent programme to the electorate in order to unseat the Rawlings regime in next year's election. "After all, we outnumber them and we have better alternatives to their programmes" he quipped.


When asked about the constitutional status of the Alliance for Change (AFC), Dr Tamakloe said the AFC was not a political party but rather a pressure group with the following broad objectives:


i) to let Ghanaians know their rights as enshrined in the Constitution. ii) to let the ordinary person know that democratic principles as enshrined in the constitution need to be adhered to the letter to avoid the "coup syndrome" which has bedeviled many a country in Africa. iii) to get all opposition parties in the country under one umbrella to fight the 1996 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

To this end the AFC is going to spare no effort to carry their message across to Ghanaians. They aim to use all "constitutional weapons" available to them including demonstrations and strikes in their fight against what they regard as the Rawlings dictatorship.


The AFC is made up of people from the two main political traditions in the country - the Nkrumahists and the Busia/Danquah group. The full list of the members of the AFC and their political affiliations is as follows:


Mr Kwaku Baako (Nkrumahist) Mr Akoto-Ampaw (Nkrumahist) Mr Kwesi Pratt (Nkrumahist) Nana Akufo-Addo (Busia/Danquah) Dr. N. Nyaho-Tamakloe (Busia/Danquah) Dr. Charles Wereko-Brobby (Busia/Danquah) Mr Kwaku Poku (Busia/Danquah) Mr Victor Newmann (Busia/Danquah) Mr Kakraba Cromwell (Busia/Danquah)


Asked whether the opposition could win the next election even if they unite, Dr. Tamakloe cited the recent bye- election in the Upper East Region where the opposition presented one candidate and won an overwhelming victory.


"In fact, so overwhelming was the victory that the candidate for the ruling NDC lost his deposit", he added. He also cited the Zambia and Malawi as examples where the opposition came together to defeat the incumbents.