NDC: Influence of Rawlings and Nana Konadu in party is realistic

Accra (Greater Accra) -The National Democratic Congress (NDC) said on Monday the fact that President Jerry John Rawlings and the First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings wield considerable power and influence in the party is to be expected since they were central to its founding.

This was contained in a statement by the Party's National Press Secretary Mr. Vincent Asiseh, in reaction to comments by the former Finance Minister, Dr Kwesi Botchwey that the President and his wife wield enormous influence in the party.

The NDC statement said the degree of internal democracy within any political party varies depending on its needs, strengths and weaknesses.

The statement said when parties are founded on the basis of a clear political philosophy, as in the case of the NDC, they tend to start out revolving around the founding figures that made the political philosophy in the first place.

Such founding figures must necessarily exert their influence in developing the political philosophy after which the party evolves towards greater internal democracy and less centralised influence.

It pointed out that in Ghana this evolutionary process is illustrated by the central role that Dr Kwame Nkrumah played in the CPP.

"Today, virtually every political party which is claiming to be democratic internally also claims to be pursuing the Nkrumaist tradition." The statement said the Busia-Danquah tradition evolved in the same way.

"Today's NDC marks the beginning of the evolution of a new tradition centred around the political philosophy of the founding figures with President Rawlings much in the role Nkrumah once played in the CPP."

The statement said the NDC is still a young party, which is confident of evolving politically in this manner over the coming decades within a stable national polity.