CPP Leadership Must Set The Records Straight On The 2012 Elections

The Office of Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom calls on the Leadership of the CPP and its Central Committee to condemn in no uncertain terms the utterances of Mr. Isaac Opare-Addo who is reported by the media to have said that the CPP should “…strategize on getting ‘winnable’ candidates for 2012 parliamentary elections saying this could help the CPP get more representatives in parliament and for that matter government” and boycott the presidential elections. The impunity with which certain people supposedly members of the Party have started undermining the chances of the Party in 2012 is alarming and must be nipped in the bud. If not, the CPP will rapidly lose credibility and will not be able to win one Parliamentary seat and have no chance at even 0.5% of the Presidential vote. The very existence of the CPP is under threat.

Unfortunately Opare-Addo is not the only one playing this dangerous game. The so-called Sankofa CPP fired the first shot. This was followed by some veteran, well-known journalists. Also, some so-called leading members of the CPP have been quietly plotting to join the call of “no CPP Presidential Candidate for 2012”. Again, some of the same people who torpedoed the CPP’s 2008 campaign have started making ugly noises that must not be allowed to gain currency.

The paucity of Opare-Addo’s opinion is revealed when he is also reported to have said that “…all aspirants for the party’s flag bearer ship position who call themselves true members of the CPP must be ready to sacrifice their ambitions and support the party’s parliamentary candidates with the necessary logistics and resources to succeed.” The CPP as a party believes in self-determination. But when it comes to building the Party and contesting elections, some of its members become apostles of dependency – they want others to look for the money, logistics and supporters for them to use to win positions! The CPP must find parliamentary and presidential candidates who will help organize the party and as a result get members who will support the campaign of its candidates through the dues they pay and contributions they make not by relying on a handful of people to foot the bill.

After the 1996 elections, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom helped to bring the 5 PCP Members of Parliament and the PNC MPs together to try and encourage the building of a formidable base for the broader CPP family in Parliament. Then after the disastrous 2000 elections, when the CPP ended up with only one Member of Parliament, Dr. Nduom once again led in forming the Parliamentary Action Group (PAG) which was inaugurated by the ten Chairman of the CPP, Prof. Abubaker Alhassan. The purpose of the PAG was to encourage good, resourceful and popular people to contest on the ticket of the CPP to go to Parliament. He suggested concentrating on 50 constituencies to be selected by the Party so as not to overstretch the resources of the Party. Dr. Nduom was roundly condemned and maligned so much by CPP people who thought that he was leading a campaign against the Party fielding a Presidential candidate. Against all odds, the efforts of the PAG paid off when the CPP in 2004 increased its MP count from one to three. In KEEA, the Presidential Candidate of the CPP polled over 5% of the vote compared to the national average of less than 1%.

The point is that it is good, resourceful and popular Parliamentary candidates that the CPP needs IN ADDITION to a good, resourceful and popular Presidential candidate. The two MUST go together. Even when this happens, the CPP as a party must be well organized from the polling station level up and unite behind its parliamentary and presidential candidates.

We call on the Leadership of the CPP to use this opportunity to set the records straight about its intentions and goals for the 2012 elections.

Signed by: Mr. Kofi Asamoah Siaw Office of Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom 020-8274852