NDC will sink further if members don't allow fresh leadership - Rawlings

Former President Jerry Rawlings has disputed claims by former president John Mahama that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) lost the polls because of a 'lame horse'.

The party lost the polls because it betrayed the masses and lost touch with the values of the June 4 revolution.

He made the comments when he delivered an address at the 38th anniversary celebration held in Wa today [Sunday].

Former president Mahama at meeting with former appointees under his administration charged them to focus on rebuilding the party instead of struggling for power or who leads the party.

Addressing some of his appointees recently in Accra, Mr Mahama said, “...for [the] people talking about leadership and the presidency, it's absolutely premature. If you ride a lame horse into a race and you lose the race, your priority must be to cure the lameness of the horse.''

But Mr. Rawlings has disputed the claims of the lame horse stressing that, the party lost because of corruption and greed. The NDC is found in the values of probity and accountability but we have lost that value, he emphasized.

"Believe it or not the greed of today is a thousand times more than what these Generals were executed for," he boomed. He said under the past NDC government, some officials amassed wealth and "used money as a political weapon to become kingmakers."

"If I was doing this, would any of them be where they are today?" According to him, the party will sink further if members fail to allow for a fresh leadership with integrity to take over.

‘’If we cannot get our claws off and allow for fresh leadership to emerge, then we shall sink further even further…We need fresh leaders with solid integrity,’’ to provide the needed leadership.

This year’s anniversary was attended by the Minority leader Haruna Iddrisu, former Defence Minister Benjamin Kunbour, former Trade Minister Dr Ekow Spio-Garbrah, former Deputy Transport Minister Mike Hammah, former Deputy Minister Ricketts-Hagan, former Health Minister Joseph Yileh Chireh and other officials of the Mahama administration.