Martin Amidu must be called to order

Martin Amidu, who has suddenly found himself, a political space and presenting himself as if he is the best Ghana has seen or produced, has to be called to order. Ever since he was booted out of office as Attorney General quietly righty so for insubordination by the late President Mills, he has carved for himself an image of “Mr knows it all”.

Since his dismissal as Attorney General (AG), Amidu has suddenly seen everything wrong with NDC party and the government he had served religiously for more than two decades until he was shown the exit on 19 January 2012.

This is the man who served as deputy AG in the Rawlings era, handpicked and endorsed as presidential running mate of late President Mills’ then presidential candidate for NDC in 2000 general elections, again this is a man who was made the Interior Minister and later AG by late President Mills until he was sacked in January 2012. In all these positions that Martin Amidu served Ghanaians are yet to read about his track record.

Amidu’s cynical attempt to caught public sympathy for his past failures will not wash. His unnecessary vilification of the NDC party and government is tantamount to purely cheap politics and or playing to the public gallery and the media to resurrect of his already dead political career. His one man crusade of the so called “peoples vigilante”, has no resonance with the majority of Ghanaians.

Just listen to Amidu’s talk of accountability and transparency and one will feel like laughing off his/her head. Amidu should know that accounting for petty expenses during the time that he was a Minister as indicated in one of his public statements does not necessary equate to accountability and transparency that he wants to portray or make Ghanaians to believe.

Martin Amidu should account for or be transparent about the wrongs that he was party to in the PNDC era. Infact to my recollection he did not even attend the Truth and Reconciliation Commission established by former President Kofour’s regime as his mentor and former President Rawlings and others did. Yet every opportunity he gets with his new found media friends he tries to project his folly.

His law suit against the Attorney General and others at the Supreme Court will fail spectacularly. One does not need to be a lawyer to know that defeat and disgrace is stirring at Amidu, in his desperate populist attempt; and will further sink his already tarnished image.

People who know Martin Amidu will attest to the fact that this man is full of himself right from his secondary school to university days. He is the type that thinks and feels that if he is not in the helm of things nobody else should.

This explains why, he tried to show insubordination when summoned by the late President Mills to explain his misbehaviour towards him and the government on the Woyome and the judgement debt saga. It also underscores his bragging statement that, he was begged a number of times to join the NDC government by late President Mills in one of his diabolical populist press statements stuns in January 2012.

Some Ghanaians believe and rightly so, that his vilification of the late President Mills and some members or leaders of the NDC is the fact that late President Mills dropped him in his choice of running mate in the 2008 elections in favour of candidate and now President John Mahama.

Ghanaians should not be fooled, into thinking that Amidu’s attack on the leadership of NDC on their endorsement of President Mahama as the presidential candidate of the party and his latest article entitled “Diversity in Unity for sustainable Nation Building and Development: The case of Ethnic, Racial, Religious and other identity arithmetic in Politics “(published on 23 August 2012 on www.myjoyonline.com); are legitimate issues of public interest. His actions are a smoke screen and politics of envy by him and the ilk that dislike President Mahama to get elected as President in the December 2012 elections; even though he (Amidu) denies such charges.

One wonders what Amidu’s latest self- serving article is meant to achieve? he should know that his latest cheap politics will not dissuade well meaning Ghanaian to go out and campaign for President John Mahama to win the December 2012 elections.

Unlike Amidu, President John Mahama has an enviable good track record as a public servant and also has more then what it takes to be President of Ghana come 2013. He has the qualities of a good leader. His choice by the NDC leadership as presidential candidate is equally based on merit and competence. President Mahama has national appeal and transcends tribal and religious lines. He has exhibited honesty, integrity, probity, accountability and transparency through out his political career as Member of Parliament, Minister, Vice President and President of Ghana.

While one respect Amidu’s constitutional right to freedom of expression and what have you, it is equally imperative that Ghanaians, friends and the NDC leadership should be able to take Martin Amidu on or call him to order when his free speech or behaviour is unacceptable.

David Atugiya

The author is a Human Rights and Social Justice Campaigner, Finance and Management Consultant; Specialist in NGO; Chartered Fellow CMI and Millennium Awards Fellow.