NDC-USA Crying Over Rigging?

Our attention has been drawn to a publication that appeared in the "Ghanaians Abroad" section of Ghanaweb on July 16, 2013 under the heading ''The bizarre NDC-USA Congress" authored by members of the Atlanta Chapter of NDC – USA, who were at the Congress.

NDC-USA Atlanta chapter's article seeks to give a clear on-the-ground description of events that characterized the congress which was held on Saturday, July 13 and Sunday, July 14 at Worcester in Massachusetts by the USA branch of NDC. The vivid description of the aggrieved chapter reveals the bizarre occurrences that bedeviled the congress: rigging, intimidation, bloated voters’ register among others depicts a true NDC style Congress.

To most discerning Ghanaians, crying oneself hoarse about vote buying, stealing and voter intimidation at an NDC congress is no news, however, we were taken aback by the hue and cry of the members of NDC-Atlanta chapter for not knowing that what happened at their congress is typical of their political party. According to their article, the congress was marinated with bloated voters register; vote buying and intimidation, which necessitated the invitation of the Worcester Police force on the congress grounds. The display of violent tendencies and unbridled aggression by NDC members during elections is not surprising, but one would have thought that many years stay in the USA would have refined certain primitive tendencies, therefore, the invitation of the Worcester Police at the congress has soiled the otherwise good reputation Ghanaians have carved in Massachusetts.

Many instances can drive home our point about the undemocratic NDC congresses. We are all witnesses to the infamous "Swedru declaration" where there was an imposition just like what the out-going chairman - according to the Atlanta report - has done. Then again, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings' defeat at the Sunyani Congress of their party was soaked in vote buying, intimidation of her supporters and other electoral irregularities. The humiliation she suffered after the congress, clearly typifies the nature of the NDC. Notably, the 2012 elections petition at the Supreme Court has further highlighted the fraudulent nature of the NDC in electoral competition. The same communist inferior tactics and Machiavellian antics of double registration, over-voting, vote padding etc that were employed by John Mahama and their NDC party to rig the 2012 elections are what have been engaged by Agyenim Boateng and his subordinate to impose their preferred candidates on the NDC-USA, according to its Atlanta chapter.

To us, it comes as a surprise that it has taken the Atlanta chapter of NDC-USA that long to know the nature of their own political party. It can be recalled, howbeit, ironically that the Atlanta chapter of NDC-USA is the one of the few Diaspora chapters who congratulated John Mahama on his bogus victory and consistently stood by their party's position that the 2012 presidential elections were free and fair, even in the face of the preponderance of evidence that have been laid before the Supreme Court. It is obvious that, to them, "two legs good, four legs bad", as pertains in George Orwell’s Animal Farm.

Truth be told, we are least surprised about the bizarre nature of the congress. We know the nature and the make-up of the NDC. The party has its hallmark as an electoral rigging machine. It must also be noted that members of NDC-USA are folks who had earlier been part of the party in Ghana before sojourning to the USA to join the NDC-USA branch. They have had their shot of the party's brute, intimidating and vote rigging adrenaline before coming to the USA. They are no different from their Ghanaian counterparts. As the saying goes, a tree trunk will never become a crocodile no matter how long it stays under a river.

The abuse of power, intimidation, bloated register and votes buying perpetuated by the NDC-USA chairman and his lieutenants and which has copiously been shared with the public by the disenchanted NDC-Atlanta is very worrying. The later unequivocally stated that "What transpired at the congress is illegal and the outcome must be ignored by members of NDC USA. And for the Police to be invited for such a simple matter bothering on the bylaws of an organization such as NDC USA are absurd and must be condemned by all. We implore the leadership of NDC in Ghana to investigate this issue, because we of NDC Atlanta and we believe the majority of the existing branches (perhaps they meant chapters because there can be only one branch in the USA) of NDC USA take a strong exception to what happened at the congress. We did not send our delegation to such a simple family gathering for people to call Police on them. Investigation conducted by our delegation at the congress revealed that some of the people who claimed to be representatives of the so-called new Branches were not genuine. Basically, people were invited from somewhere to represent some of these new Branches so they could vote for their preferred candidates. We don’t believe any NDC USA congress have ever ended with the invitation of the Police during a debate on its bylaws. It is a very bad legacy left behind by the outgoing Executives of NDC USA, and must be condemned."

As much as NPP-USA would have liked to empathize with the aggrieved chapter those blatant political and electoral illegitimacy should not be allowed to triumph. We hesitate to do so because in the books of NDC, according to Yaw Boateng Gyan, no elections can be free and fair.

We hope that NDC-Atlanta will uphold the rule of law and emulate the famous and patriotic steps of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the New Patriotic Party and seek legal redress to their resentments. After all, they are in America (the bedrock of rule of law) and should not allow political and electoral illegitimacy to trample their by-laws.

Indeed, by their fruits, we shall know them!

Public Relations Committee, NPP-USA