JJ Beats Retreat

The Former President and the Founder of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) Flt Lt. Jeremiah John Rawlings after endorsing his wife as the standard-bearer of the NDP, has beaten a retreat by predicting victory for President John Dramani Mahama in the upcoming December elections.

According to him, the NDC leader who is also a communications expert has the potential to win elections.

Giving the strongest indication, probably not in favour of his wife, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, who is promising to eliminate corruption and champion the course of the vulnerable, Mr. Rawlings asserted that “John Mahama is capable of winning the election in his own right”.

Speaking in a brief interview with Citi News in Accra, Ex- President Rawlings said incumbency gives President Mahama an “advantage”.

The former leader was making his first public pronouncement after accompanying his wife Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, to the National Democratic Party (NDP) congress over the weekend in Kumasi, where she was acclaimed the flagbearer of the breakaway party.

Rawlings admitted that ‘in spite of that huge and heavy turnout [at the NDP congress], I believe John is capable of winning an election in his own right. Besides he has the additional advantage of being in government.”

“In the meantime someone in the country has to show enough respect and pay our political debts to the women of Ghana” he added.

The declaration was no different from what he said recently in Ho and in Kumasi when he sought to repose confidence in John Mahama.

During an interaction with chiefs in the Volta region, the NDC founder minced no words by stating emphatically that President Mahama has revived the hopes and the dwindling fortunes of the NDC.

In his words, he said: “the emergence of John Mahama has also added a spark to the governing party and therefore reduced the old fear and anxiety; in other words, he has brought on board possibility of also winning the election.”

At the special congress to endorse President Mahama as the official candidate of the NDC, Former President Rawlings stated that during the days of the late President, he did everything to seek for some support to some communities to no avail but said when he put it before John Mahama, it was swiftly done.

He commended Mahama for taking such bold decision except to ask him to deal with babies with sharp teeth that can pour what he termed as ‘horrible invectives’