Former First Lady and Vice-Chairman of the NDC, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings says the NDC has pretty good chances at the 2012 elections if it tackles the issues that went wrong during the eight years of the NPP government.
She said the future is bright not necessarily because of what the NDC government has done or is doing but by just looking at the rot that engulfed the country during the NPP¹s rule.
Speaking during a wide-ranging interview with Joy¹s FM¹s Evans Mensah on the Super Morning Show on Wednesday, Nana Konadu who is also the President of the 31st December Women¹s Movement said the NPP totally impoverished Ghanaians. ³I believe the issues that we fought for are still relevant. We have to look at what went wrong and see what can be done right,² she said.
The former First Lady discounted criticisms that her husband, former President Jerry Rawlings had unjustifiably been criticising President Mills, noting that all the criticism are based on a reality that he has tried to pass on to people who do not want to take it or even listen to.
³I really should not come and sit here and decide who is justified and who is not, but my husband has run this country for 18 years. He can see when something is going downhill. He can feel it. People send him text messages from all over the countryŠhe has his pulse on it and they call him about everything that is going on. So when he makes a statement it¹s not out of a critique or criticism but it is based on a reality that he has tried to pass on that people do not want to take or nobody wants to listen toŠ,² Mrs. Rawlings said.
Asked about the threat of a potential Akufo Addo candidature to the fortunes of the NDC in 2012 Nana Konadu parried the question and said she rather wanted to talk about the 31st December Women¹s Movement, the difficulty women and children go through and the negative effects of the Internet on children. ³Let¹s talk about positive things,² she added.
Asked how she had been coping after the Valentine¹s Day fire, which razed down their Ridge residence and destroyed all their personal effects, Nana Konadu she was living with her mother because ³we are trying to look for a place to rent.² Mrs. Rawlings said former President Rawlings was living at their village house at Tefle and had to trek in and out when he had meetings in Accra. She said she believed the Ridge residence would eventually be rebuilt.
³It is difficult. I try to live in my mother¹s house most of the time but on weekends I am always with him. It is not good for married life, it is not good for partnership, it is not good for family life, it is not good for companionship, it is not good for anythingŠeven for discussionsŠwhen in the evening you want to sit down and toss things over. It is not easy but we are coping.
On the controversial allegations that the former President was responsible for setting fire to their residence, Nana Konadu said it was a shame for people who said it was the accuser¹s freedom of speech as enshrined in the constitution.
She said: ³The same constitution also states very clearly that whereas you have your freedom, you do not go beyond your freedom into other persons freedoms. And your freedoms come with responsibilities.²
Nana Konadu said the educational system needs to be improved and a new way of educating children introduced to ensure that children are encouraged to think so they can come out with solutions that will confound even their teachers.
When the issue of women came up for discussion the DWM President said women need to be empowered politically so they can understand political decisions that affect them on a daily basis. She said if women are not empowered politically then half of the population will be left ignorant about how their towns and villages are being run. ³I believe women should be an absolute part of any system of development in Ghana,² she stated.
The former First Lady said she believed bills on women took time in Parliament because the body was dominated by men who sometimes do not directly encounter the problems women face so are not inclined to expedite action on matters such as the 30 per cent representation of women in all political party candidatures.
Visit Former President Rawlings¹ blog site - http://jjrawlings.wordpress.com/
