If you must be a liar, at least be a smart liar – Akoffo Addo is no JAK

By Abdullah Abdullah

Blessed are those who do not expect for they shall not be disappointed.

Nov 23, 2016 Ghanaweb had an article which read: NPP leads in four swing regions; DKM crushes NDC in B/A

It goes on to say: “The Polls conducted Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, a German organization in collaboration with the Political Science Department of the University of Ghana, Legon”. I say “Pff”. I expect something better than that from The Political Science Department of our Flagship University. This is time of smartness – smart phones, smart fridges, smart TVs, even smart Toilets. We also now have a smart electorate, so at least you must be smart in your lies also. Follow the trend my friends.

However, this to me is great news to NDC supporters. But first of all to the authors of the polls, I say to you “if you must lie at least be smart liars”. The first weakness of this report is that the Northern region can only be classified as Swing region by a NOVICE pollster. Can a Region that has more than 80% of the time voted NDC be called swing? Based on what do you classify a region as swing?

Anyway, do we remember the latest shocker in the last American elections? Well it was not meant to be so, we – and I mean all those of us who supported Clinton are still licking our wounds from the unexpected thrashing from Trump. Did not all the polls show that almost all swing states were leaning Democrat? Well, there we go again. The Clinton team’s expectations were so high the only barrier to their victory celebration was the end of the elections, not the results. To them the pollsters had shown that the election was a done deal. You know what the problem was?.

They were all cooked polls, deliberately skewed to favour Clinton to discourage the republican base so they do not turn out due to lost hope.

I can see my NPP friends in the same state in Ghana as the Clinton supporters. On-line opinion polls, EIU and now this group all say Akuffo is winning. Well my advice to AKuffo and the NPP is “Blessed are those who do not expect for they shall not be disappointed”. Conceal your smiles and laughs because it becomes very painful if it turns out the other way, and God willing it is going to be the worst defeat in recorded history for Akuffo Ado and NPP. I think Sir John’s white handkerchiefs are still in your memory.

If you look at the media, NPP is just displaying fake euphoria to hide their fear. This is plain when you see their attitude. They are paranoid. Blame game from day one. Not a day goes by without someone cheating them. If not Charllote Osei, it is Mahama, if not Mahama it is the IGP. Everybody is out against the NPP. Before it was Kwadjo Aferi Gyan who was out against them. Now it is Charlote Osei. The anxiety of NPP is very palpable. This does not look like a winning team to me.

When you talk of the NPP winning in the Northern region, I tell you if it were Kuffour, maybe – just maybe but Akuffo, I say God willing – NO way!. He’ll be lucky to get half of what he got in the last elections.

You see, third time lucky is not set in stone. So insha Allah, there is going to be a change this time so Ghanaian flag bearers will forgo that notion that it is third time lucky. Ghanains voted for Kuffour and Mills in their third attempts for what they saw in them but just because it was the third term for them.

They did not beg to be tried, they stood tall and commanded to be elected and they got it. They demanded to be elected based on their character, patience, accommodation, humbleness, and most of all for accepting the reality of the previous defeats. They lost and that meant they lost they pondered over it, and planned for the next move.

On the other hand, Akuffo and Bawumia team is a pure manipulator. In 2008, instead of conceding their defeat like honourable men, they rushed to the courts with fake claims, claims that even a child could laugh off, but the courts have to do their duty and accepted to waste the time and money of Ghanaians.

Their supporters vowed to make life difficult for Mahama and they did not disappoint. Market burnings and orchestrated strikes here and there. The irony of the whole situation was that while Akuffo and Bawumia wanted to disenfranchise voters to be declared winners, their supporters formed the noisy pressure group called “LET MY VOTE COUNT”. You see the irony here?

These are people who want to disenfranchise others and yet call themselves “Let my vote count”. They were not smart enough to choose a name so they just imitated the Philipinos who felt they were cheated in an election. You are the one cheating and you call yourself” let my vote count”! Only in Ghana!

Then there is their desperation at its best. In 2008, they organized a temporal marriage with the NDC founder with the hope that this will sway some NDC supporters to them. It failed miserably. Now they seem to have divorced the NDC founder and married another disappointed NDC guy in the person Martin Amidu. I hope this will be their last marriage.

I see another divorce coming; I just hope it is not a nasty one. Instead of recruiting disgruntled NDC members why not go back and patch up with your own divorcees?. Paul Afoko, Sammy Crabb and Kwabena Agyepong. This will be more helpful; I guess.

Anyhow, I end with this advice. Akuffo you aren’t Kuffour, so do not look at the Northern Region, It is better to not expect than be disappointed. Aliu Mahama is still fresh in our memories. Third time lucky is not for all. You destroyed the house that JAK built. Insha Allah come December 7, it is Mahama again.

Writer's e-mail: Abdullaha147@yahoo.com