NDC founder Jerry John Rawlings
By: Najeeb Yahya (NDC youth activist)
It's been over a week since a campaign poster emerged; advertising former President of Ghana and NDC founder Jerry John Rawlings as a contender for the position of the national chairmanship position for the opposition national democratic congress (NDC) in their next party congress.
The news has gone viral, not only on social media, but also on mainstream media without any response - denial or endorsement of the claim. This is very uncharacteristic of the former President Rawlings who has issued so many media rejoinders in recent times to disclaim several publications bearing his name.
Many have dismissed the campaign poster as a fake news item despite the loud silence of Mr. Rawlings over the campaign posters. Others have laughed over it. Their argument is that, the former President who is also founder of the NDC cannot, or will not stoop so low as to contest for the position of the national chairman of a party he himself claim to have founded single-handedly.
RAWLINGS HIDDEN AGENDA
What these people have glaringly ignored, is the history of the political tactics of Rawlings vis-a-vis his present political agenda. They have also ignored the popular refrain for several years now, that Rawlings has always wanted to take back his party (NDC) from the so-called greedy bastards whom he accuses of usurping his political tradition and burying his foundational principles and values of probity and accountability. He has accused everybody in the NDC of being corrupt except himself and his family.
TESTING THE WATERS
From 2009 - 2011, we witnessed the same tactics from the house of the Rawlings. Similar rumours first emerged of the Presidential ambitions of the former first lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings.
Posters similar to what we have seen today of Mr. Rawlings, emerged from different parts of the country. They called themselves movement for Konadu 2012 led by one Henry Oware from Kumasi. Nana Konadu remained mute over the rumours and her posters circulated all over the media.
After several months of speculation and denials, Nana Konadu eventually, run for national vice chair-person of the NDC in the Tamale congress 2010. She won. People thought that was the end of it.
By 2011, the posters and banners for Nana Konadu for President 2012 got intensified and widespread. Mrs. Rawlings, who by the way, personally and undoubtedly sponsored those gimmicks, remained mute, sometimes even denying any knowledge of such promotional materials.
Many Ghanaians, were very well fooled by these gimmicks even when the friends of Nana Konadu Agyeman - Rawlings (FONKAR) group emerged within the NDC to promote her Presidential ambitions at the time. Eventually, Nana Konadu could no longer hide under groups and banners.
She declared her ambitions and run for the NDC primaries in 2011 against a sitting President Mills. We all know how that elections ended up.
But did it really end there? No. Nana Konadu went on to form the National Democratic Party, a breakaway party from the NDC with the help of her
husband Mr. Rawlings and Kofi Adams who was then a deputy general secretary of the NDC, now national organiser. She tried but failed to contest for President in 2012. She eventually made a failed attempt in 2016.
SAME PLAY BOOK
As they say, leopards can never change their colours.
So: In 2015, another gimmick of the same style emerged from the political play book of Mr. Rawlings. it was on the back of the June 3 Accra flooding which led to massive lost of lives and property in Accra.
From nowhere, the first daughter of Mr. Rawlings, Dr. Zanetor Agyeman - Rawlings appeared on the scene. Posing as a humanitarian, she began donating items, cleaning gutters and sweeping the streets.
A couple of weeks later, posters and banners emerged on social media of her intention to run for parliament in the Klottey Korle constituency.
Once again, many Ghanaians lived in self-denial. The media sought answers from the Rawlings house-hold but to no avail.
Eventually, Zanetor Rawlings emphatically denied having any such intentions and ambitions of running for parliament.
Lots of people believed her denials and disclaimers. little did they know she was operating from the same play book of her father Mr. Rawlings.
With all the controversies around whether or not her name was in the NDC register of names of active members as well as the national voters register, Miss Zanetor Rawlings woke everyone from their sleep when she eventually announced her intention by filing to contest the NDC primaries in the Klottey Korle constituency.
Today, against all odds and with all the stiff opposition from within and outside of the NDC, she is the sitting member of parliament for that constituency.
Fast forward to 2017. The NDC is now in opposition. And this is widely believed to be what Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings have always wished and worked for,
since the days of President Mills. Mrs. Rawlings has vowed in the past that she will never disband her NDP and return to the NDC as long as it remains in the hands of the so-called greedy bastards.
In furtherance of this, she worked very hard in 2016 to ensure the defeat of the NDC with the backing of her husband, Mr. Rawlings.
PERFECT TIMING
With the NDC now in opposition, the Rawlings’ are now in a perfect position to the NDC. There is now clearance for the return of the NDP once the NDC comes back into the hands of Mr. Rawlings.
It is not surprising for some of us who have studied the Rawlings tactics over the years to suddenly see former President Rawlings returning to the tricks of his political play book - the same tactics he and his wife have constantly employed over the years .
EXPEDIENCY OF TEMPORARY ALLIANCES
Just when the Rawlings for NDC chairman posters emerged and went viral in the media without any disclaimers from ridge, E.T Mensah, a disgruntled former ally of Mr. Rawlings began to speak out against the NDC and calling for the party to go and beg Nana Konadu to return to the opposition party.
Well, I am sure many unsuspecting followers see this as a coincidence. However, those who have followed the history knows very well, that Mr. E. T Mensah who served as long time sports minister under Rawlings was a key
member of the NDC who led the charge to isolate Mr. Rawlings and his wife from the NDC during the reign of President Mills.
Indeed, Mr. E.T Mensah once proclaimed that Rawlings is not the only founder of the NDC and his wife Nana Konadu can go to hell. What has suddenly happened?
Obviously having being opposed by elements suspected to be around former President Mahama to loose his parliamentary primaries in 2015 to Samuel George, E.T Mensah now feel that the NDC must return to the hands of the Rawlings because the enemy of one's enemy is one's friend. It has become expedient to re-allign with the Rawlings', even if temporarily.
END GAME
Well, how else will Mr. Rawlings take back the NDC and get the party to
'beg' Nana Konadu Agyeman -Rawlings to disband her NDP and return? Unless
people don't believe that Mr. Rawlings means business with his intention to
practically ''take back'' the NDC party and perpetuate his family hegemony within the party, his posters and banners announcing his intention to run
as NDC chairman must be taken very seriously. After all, if he truly runs, who will oppose him? not even the NDC constitution will.
It is obvious that Mr. Rawlings will now want to determine who becomes the next NDC flag bearer and running mate for the 2020 elections to truly give practical meaning to his ''taking back'the party. As chairman of the NDC, he will be able to do that without any hindrance.
And since his daughter Zanetor Agyeman - Rawlings has now been elevated to
member of parliament, she may just be one step in the play book of Mr. Rawlings in joining the leadership of the NDC to the next election with her father as party chairman - Lets just hope that the return of her mother to her "rightful" position within the NDC does not create problems between the two. Mind you she might still be interested in leading her husband's "dynasty".
Think long and hard about it before you dismiss the true intentions of Mr.
Rawlings and his family for the NDC party in the present-future.
CLEAR SIGNALS
Like his wife and his daughter, Mr. Rawlings has gone back to the same old play book and given clear signals of his intention to run for party
chairman of the NDC through the banners and posters circulating on social and mainstream media. Take him seriously if you don't want to be surprised by him.
RAWLINGS WITHOUT AK47
The obvious question many are asking is whether or not the NDC of today will place the daunting, level - headed and highly intellectual task of party chairmanship in the hands of Mr. Rawlings whose real political value cannot be determined in the absence of an AK47 and his fading charismatic gestures.
The political times have moved on beyond the days of Mr. Rawlings. Organising a political party from opposition with alternative policies require scientific approaches and dynamism coupled with energy and endurance.
An era of building political momentum and gauging the mood of the people via social media has overtaken Mr. Rawlings. It is therefore important for the NDC and it's followers to know that Rawlings can only take the party back seventeen years into perpetual opposition as party chairman in this post-modern era. Recapturing power from the ruling NPP cannot come through outmoded steps and methodologies.
FOUNDATIONS AND MEMOIRS
Many former Presidents of today are engaged in humanitarian and philanthropic work through foundations funded through their world-wide networks of friends donors, proceeds from the sale of their auto-biographies etc to build educational endowment funds as well as health promotion and mentorship for youth development.
Unfortunately, Mr. Rawlings has failed to live up to this trend since retiring for over seventeen years - lacking behind President J.A Kufuor, George Bush, Barack Obama etc who only recently retired. Less than one month after retirement, President Barack Obama has already set out to release his third book next year. Even Mr. Obasanjo of Nigeria who retired not long
ago is working through charitable foundations to leave behind a positive legacy.
Mr. Rawlings on the other hand cannot boast of one single book and is now still writing letters after seventeen years to the government of Ghana to give him prime land in the name of a foundation which no one, except himself, can tell the specifics of.
Rather, Mr. Rawlings wants to come back to become NDC national chairman in his old age in order to leave a legacy. And at a time when he has lost his moral high ground of probity and accountability by admitting that he ever took USD 5.2M from the late Nigerian dictator General Abacha and kept in his family account, rather than the state account.
If there are still some people left in the NDC with a clarity of mind, let them wake up from their slumber and STOP Mr. Rawlings NOW from becoming NDC national chairman before it is too late to undo his intentions because the consequences of this reality will be dire for both his family and the NDC.
By: Najeeb Yahya (NDC youth activist)
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