Be serious, and stop being condescending, Asiedu-Nketia: Northerners are Ghanaians, not aliens!

I listened with horror and utter incredulity to the National Chairman of National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu-Nketia’s recent ethnocentric vile video in which he is pontificating somewhat incoherently that Akufo-Addo did not want an Ashanti indigene to be a flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), and hence imposing Bawumia, a Northerner on the people of Ashanti(emphasis mine).

Much as it is wholly disgusting, it is not quite surprising that the National Chairman of NDC, Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, is squeamishly resorting to tribal politics.

After all, it was the same Asiedu-Nketia and his NDC operatives that asserted somewhat preposterously some time ago that the NPP, a supposedly Akans party, won’t support a northerner as a presidential candidate.

Isn’t it bizarre that after the NPP has defied Asiedu-Nketia and cohort tribal gimmicks and elected Bawumia, a northerner as a flagbearer, the same naysayers would then turn around and accuse them of imposing a northerner on Ashantis?

Indeed, Ghanaian politics is saturated with dishonesty and hypocrisy.

Honestly, in so far as the politicians and their teeming supporters are desperately seeking power does not in any way give them an audacity to engage in tribal incitements as means to score cheap political advantage.

We must not lose sight of the fact that most wars, crimes and genocides which were perpetrated against humanity were arguably expedited through the use of hate speech aimed at securing popular support for illegal and violent action.

History has taught us that hate speech could spell doom for a nation, so it is quite disturbing that no less a person than experienced politicians like Johnson Asiedu-Nketia would keep uttering opprobrious pronouncements that can incite violence.

Unfortunately, the National Democratic Congress loyalists are fond of making ethnocentric comments.

Asiedu-Nketia, if Ashantis are indeed inveterate tribalists, why did the same Ashantis refuse to support their own and rather throw their support previously behind the ‘Northerner’ Dr Hilla Limann of blessed memory in 1979?

Let us also remind Asiedu-Nketia and cohort that Jerry John Rawlings of blessed memory was a bona fide Ewe, but received an unfailing support from Ashantis.

More so, if Ashantis are indeed not keen on a leader from the north, why did the same people throw their support behind Akufo-Addo for choosing a northerner as a running mate in four consecutive general elections?

In the past, no less a person than former President John Dramani Mahama has expressed ethnocentric sentiments on his travels across the length and breadth of the country.

If you would recall, sometime in 2020, a number of prominent Ghanaians and civil society groups, including the then Chairman of Peace Council, Professor Emmanuel Asante and the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) admonished President John Dramani Mahama to refrain from making comments deemed ethnocentric against the NPP and its 2016 running mate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.

Former President Mahama while campaigning at Lawra in the Upper West Region during the 2016 electioneering campaign, was quoted as saying: “the NPP will not allow Dr. Bawumia to be their flagbearer because the party is largely not in support of northerners taking up such positions” (cityfmonline.com/ghanaweb.com, 21/11/2016).

Ex-President Mahama continued: “Sometimes I feel sad when I see some of our northern brothers running and also doing this. They will use you and dump you. “Let anything happen today and let our brother Bawumia say he is standing for president in NPP. They will never give it to him I can assure you”.

We cannot lose sight of the fact that electoral tensions before, during and after elections had culminated in conflicts in countries such as Ivory Coast, Kenya, and Zimbabwe, amongst others.

Suffice it to stress that the conflicts in those countries did not happen overnight; the perpetrators started the process gradually. They wanted to win power at all cost.

In ending, I would entreat all discerning political party followers to desist from ethnocentric gimmicks and instead sell the sterling qualities of their preferred candidate.