NPP Counters NDC's Wooing of Christian Voters

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) is clearly unhappy about the National Democratic Congress' (NDC) strategy to woo millions of Ghanaian Christian voters by presenting the incumbent President as a God-fearing, and a peace-loving man. In an opinion piece circulated to the Public Agenda and other media houses, a member of the Nana Akufo-Addo's campaign team, Herbert Krapa, denounces the NDC's strategy for courting Christian voters as shameful, arguing that the President, Prof. Evans Atta Mills has been a failure for which reason he has no other message for marketing his re-election bid than the over-used Mr. cool, Christian, God-fearing image.

"Is it not pathetic, that, the only message the NDC is taking back to the Ghanaian people is still that: Mills is a Christian and he is humble, so vote for him again," Krapa challenges in his piece.

He argues that the Mills camp is just trying to pull "a fast one" on Ghanaians again, and urges Ghanaians not to allow themselves to be taken advantage of this time around.

Writing in the style of a sermon, Krapa points out that, being a Christian is not enough, and that Christians ought to prove their worth, by working hard and making good use of the opportunities God avails them. Quoting from the book of Proverbs, the writer says the "Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in slave labour" (12:24); his future is bleak: "A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing" (20:4); he may come to poverty: "The soul of the lazy man desires and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich" (13:4 KJV).

Krapa invokes several other biblical verses to make the case that the sitting President rather than trumpet his Christian faith, must give account of his stewardship.

"Has Mills worked hard as a Christian? What use is it, if a President is God fearing and not poverty fearing as well? President Mills was voted to power to take the development and growth of our country a step further and not to keep reminding us that he is a Christian and he is humble. It is good to have a Christian as a leader but the people will not forgive a lazy Christian who sits back to watch them suffer under his watch, and so must Mills not be forgiven," he argues.

Krapa paints a miserable picture of the performance of the Mills administration. He cites the latest Gallup poll on Ghana, which according to him, reveals that 12.7million (53%) of the population can't afford the cost of food. Those living comfortably have dropped from 20% in 2007 to 4% in 2010. 34% of the population can't cope at all with the suffering, a drastic rise from 11% in 2007. The World Bank, he says, has reported that Ghanaians have gotten poorer since 2009; and the NDC Government, according to him, admits that LEAP benefit has not increased since they came to power.

Dismissing "the NDC's Christianity and humility card," Krapa argues that everybody has a belief, and that everybody hopes to find their ultimate salvation in that faith. He stresses that going to the polls to elect leaders to help run the country and make the lives of the citizens better has little to do with one's religious belief. He contends that, the primary responsibilities of the presidency is rather to institute programmes that will address the issues that matter to the people - Christians, Muslims, traditionalists, and atheists alike, such as safe neighbourhoods, clean gutters, hygienic food, streets with names, flowing tap water, reducing road traffic, and making sure that rules and regulations are obeyed.

He lists other challenges that in his view the NDC has failed to address as the urgent need to tackle widespread youth unemployment, expand the country's industrial base, modernise agriculture, quality healthcare etc. He ends on a rather rhetorical note that, "What good is it, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?" "Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and food and one of you says to him, "go, I wish you well; keep warm and be well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? Faith by itself, if not accompanied by action, is dead." He borrows from James 2:14-17 (NIV) to stress his point.