Obed’s statement courts trouble for him

Tongues are wagging among the National Democratic Congress (NDC) activists such that the ongoing internal bickering has now deepened, just days after the national chairman of the party, Dr. Obed Yao Asamoah, exonerated the New Patriotic Party (NPP) from blame over the resignation of Abraham Kofi Asante, NDC MP for Amenfi West, Chronicle has gathered.

A source at the party’s national headquarters told this paper that the chairman’s assertion that he did not have the slightest suspicion that the NPP had a hand in the decision of Kofi Asante to resign from parliament has caused most members not only to mount vitriolic attacks on him but also call for his immediate resignation.

Continuing, the source said Dr. Asamoah, who has reached the pinnacle of his political career and has wisely been playing the low key in the party, is seen as throwing a spanner into the on-going reconciliation wheel in the party.

When the former University of Legon don and general secretary of the party, Dr. Nii Josiah Aryeh, was contacted to comment on the chairman’s assertions he described them as incongruous.

According to him, if the chairman had reached Kofi Asante before making the comments, it would have won credence, but coming out publicly to clear the NPP was unfair.

“It seems therefore curious that the chairman who has not been able to talk to the individual to know the influences, pressures and reasons in detail, but he finds it necessary to exonerate the NPP, I find it to be quite incongruous.”

He contended that it would be clear for one to know the reasons and those who might have influenced Kofi Asante when you spoke to the person. “You have not spoken to the person. How can you come out publicly to clear the party that was alleged to be the brain behind the act?

The individual in question is not even in the country, he is outside and there are speculations this way and that and if somebody comes out to make such a categorical statement to the effect that NPP was not involved, it is rather unfortunate and unethical,” he intoned.

The NDC scribe stated that for the statement to have credence it would have been prudent on the part of the chairman to talk to the individual, but to say he tried to get the individual but to no avail suggests something else.

As to whether the failures of the party could be attributed to the lack of funds but not the perceived friction between the chairman and the founder of the party, Dr. Aryeh had this to say: “Division is the bane of all politics. We all know the axiom ‘divide and rule.’ What that means in practice is that if you split the party in half, its strength is diminished, it is divided.”

He argued, “If any organisation or party that is not united, the collective strength of the party is divided and if there is a split between two key figures in the party, the split is bound to have its consequences. But if you say that individual differences and opinions cannot affect the party in any way it is wrong because it is going to affect the decision taking process.”

He said the issues of the ongoing feud and the lack funds should be tackled or forced out through fundamental shake-ups, stressing that the more the issues are left unresolved the more the problem intensifies.

The general secretary blamed the chairman for not helping the Finance Committee (FC) of the party, which is mandated by the constitution, to raise funds for the party, and thus causing the NDC to lose two major seats it held in parliament.

In an answer to a question about whether the party is really broke, Dr. Nii Aryeh replied in affirmative, saying it is outrageous for the party’s chairman, whose responsibility is to help the FC to adopt means of raising funds for the party, to continue to coil in his shell, not contributing towards the party in terms of funds and logistics.

“We have failed in two by-elections, so far, and as far as I am aware, the FC has not made any contribution and if they have decided not to work, they have certainly crippled the party and I think it is outrageous,” he continued, adding “If you have an organisation that has a whole constitutional mechanism for raising money and when that organisation is faced with money problems, then we are told that that mechanism is not a mechanism to raise funds, then what mechanism is that?” “It means that the members are not performing,” he added.

When he was quizzed about speculations that the chairman has abandoned the party and that he is not performing, Dr. Aryeh responded in affirmative.

As to what is to be done to change the situation for the better, the general secretary said, “If somebody has got his office legitimately or illegitimately and is not performing, one cannot wait for his term of office of two years for the problem to be repeated like a platitude and the only solution is to step down or there should be a vote of no confidence to ensure that the party keeps going.”

Touching on the resignation of the minority spokesman on Energy, Abraham Kofi Asante, the vocal don said it is common to parties in opposition for their members to jump ship when their differences are irreconcilable.

He said jumping of ship is necessary to “separate the men from the boys, the fighters from the cowards and those who have the real cause in their hearts from those who are just looking for luxury opportunity in politics,” stressing that the NDC, or any opposition party, for that matter, needs fighters with fires in their belly to fight the battle.

Reacting to some derogatory comments made by some of the party executives about the ex-MP, Dr. Aryeh said it was unfortunate that people keep such comments bottled up within them only come out immediately the person has jumped ship.

“In my opinion, I believe that if you have been voted by people in your constituency, then there are certain expectations that you just don’t jump ship without assigning reasons and without regard to those who have voted for you. It will be fair if he gives reasons for his resignation to both the party and his constituency electorate,” he pointed out.

Reacting to how the absence of Asante will affect the party, the don said the party is galvanizing itself and will ensure it becomes stronger as ever before “with the fighters who are politically hungry” to turn its fortunes around.