Rejoinder Why the NPP must select Akufo-Addo

Jessica Maame Nyarko Arthur in her Feature Article of Tuesday April 3, 2007 gave us some information on the candidacy of Akuffo Addo and why he should be our next president (read)

However the writer did not give us concrete examples of the honourable ministers accomplishments. Thus, although Maame Nyarko’s piece was excellent and well written account it felt short to convince eligible voters. I hope she fills the gap soon.

No doubt Akuffo Addo has a very impressive resume and a very rich experience but does it and will it translate into results? Let us see his records and see the results of his career as a seasoned politician. Has he delivered so far? How has his experience and career benefited, first his constituency and second, his country? If there are any then I say give him the job of Commander-in-Chief hands down. But I am afraid it is going to be hard to reach this consensus. As we speak he is part of a government that is keeping the nation in darkness after spending a chunk of the peoples’ money in elaborate birthday celebrations.

The Golden Jubilee celebration in itself was very relevant and healthy for the nation but Ghana did not need 150 luxury cars, to say the least. I hope the media and tax payers will monitor these cars closely. In fact it is the responsibility of the stakeholders/tax payers to make sure their investments are not abused.

The issue of the $30 million presidential palace has now soared to $40 million and one can easily predict that by the end of their term in office the $30 million would have doubled but there would be no complete structures. Only God knows if the next administration will continue from where they would have reached and at what cost.

As we speak now the whole Teaching Hospital of Komfo Anokye has only one echocardiogram machine and this has broken down without repairs for the past three months. It is even safe to speculate that the whole country has jus two of such life saving machines only in the two government Teaching Hospitals of Komfo Anokye and Korlebu but what worth is it if repairing them is not a priority of government? Is about time we learned to PRIORITIZE as a country. Echocardiogram is a test that uses sound waves to create a moving picture of the heart. The picture is much more detailed than x-ray image and involves no radiation exposure.

How the test is performed

A trained sonographer performs the test. An instrument that transmits high-frequency sound waves called a transducer is placed on patient’s ribs near the breast bone and directed toward the heart. The transducer picks up the echoes of the sound waves and transmits them as electrical impulses. The echocardiography machine converts these impulses into moving pictures of the heart. Then the physician interprets the results and prsccribe the appropriate medication.

Echocardiogram works well for most patients and allows doctors to see the heart beating and to visualize many of the structures of the heart. Occasionally, because our lungs, ribs, or body tissue may prevent the sound waves and echoes from providing a clear picture of heart function, the sonographer may administer a small amount of a dye through an IV to better see the inside of the heart.Very rarely, more invasive testing using special echocardiography probes may be necessary. Echocardiogram machine is crutial in discovering and treating heart related diseases(Medical encyclopedia, http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003869.htm.) Now tell me if the 150 luxury cars was expedient for the young nation of Ghana when there are no functioning health machines in our Teaching Hospitals? How do our young doctors(students) learn?. If not then all those responsible should be guilty of mismanagement and pay the price thereof. We need transformational leaders to solve our problems.

Is good to know that the honourable minister was born in March 29, 1944 and has been the Foreign Minister of Ghana since April 2003 after serving as the Attorney General and minister of Justice for two years, 2001 to 2003.9 Great accomplishment but can you tell us what difference he made in the ministry of justice? How did he fare in enforcing the rule of law? These are the sort of things we need to hear to make our decisions.

Since the 1970s volumes have been written on transformational leadership. Space and time will not permit to discuss all the aspects of transformational leadership. Therefore this author will devote his time to highlight only the key concepts, which are of particular interest to him and discus them later if necessary.

Transformation means the creation of a new ideology, the rise of a movement, and the zeal to overthrow the status quo, and can result in the reconstruction of economy, education, law, and even social class (Boje 2000). The transformational leader is revolutionary; he/she brings about a radical positive change (Burns 1978). Burns (1978) considered transforming leadership to be the creation of an “ideological movement united (by definition) behind high moral purpose” (p. 251)

Until the late 1970s, leadership theory building and research focused on supervision as a way of bringing about incremental improvements in the performance of stable or smoothly growing work units. The study of leadership since then has been marked by intense interest in the episodes of transformational leadership in which the actions of single managers appear to create extraordinarily high levels of employee commitment, effort, and willingness to take risks in support of the organization or its mission (Orlando, Behling, and McFillen, 1996).

The writer also claimed that, “A recent newspaper article described Akuffo Addo as a potential future President of Ghana.” If I may ask, which article and on what basis was the assertion/claim made? Was it based on his resume or transformational leadership?

We all know that when Nkrumah became the first president of Ghana he did not have all the experiences and resume that go along with seasoned politicians but he had one thing that many politicians today don’t have, VISION and DRIVE. This is what makes the difference.

History will prove me right that all the leaders who make a difference in their respective countries have only one thing in common-VISION and Drive not accolades and letters to their names. So let us be careful to add them to our debates and discussions.

Ghana at this juncture needs a leader with vision and innovation not those who will just maintain the status quo. I am all for Akuffo Addo if he has any vision for Ghana. Unfortunately I have not seen any so far. Above all the love of country. Notwithstanding, Akuffo Addo is a fine gentleman whom I am proud of as a Ghanaian. And for his personality he could be a good president if only he had VISION and could bring himself to listen which I cannot vouch for at this time.

Maame Nyarko writes, “The one contestant who is seen as the man to beat is Foreign Minister Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who put up a brave attempt to challenge his senior at the Bar, John Kufuor, to lead the New Patriotic Party in 1998. However, his party is known to be of Liberal Conservatives, who preferred to stick with their already marketed 1996 candidate, John Kufuor. Ironically, for Nana Akufo-Addo, the same tradition of seniority appears to be his trump card today, being the most marketed of the current aspirants.”

If I may ask, Is the author trying to imply that it is now the turn of Akuffo Addo after Kufour? Are we talking queue business here? An enquiring mind would like to know. This could be one major setback in African politics today when people of vision are passed by for grey hairs.

The author wrote, ”He is the only ˜complete candidate” You don’t have to like him. You just have to accept that he is the only one who can deliver, period” What has he delivered to his constituents and the nation all this six years. We would like to know.

Give us a break from all those personalities and flamboyant accolades- “a winnable candidate; someone with vision, proven organizational skills, exceptional dynamism, towering political pedigree and unmatched international exposure”-.and show us the deliveries. Burns (1978) considered transforming leadership to be the creation of an “ideological movement united (by definition) behind high moral purpose” (p. 251). So far he has not been able to convince us with his Indigenous Capitalism. Action speaks louder than words. So far we have not seen much.

The author of the article also attempts to make her case for political and royal dynasty in Ghana by saying we should elect Akuffo Addo based on his heritage. She writes,

“Edward Akufo-Addo, his father who became Ghana’s third Chief Justice, was later the President of the Second Republic during the Progress Party government of Prime Minister, Dr. Kofi Abrefa Busia, from 1969 to 1972. His father’s residence, Betty House, in Korle Wokon in downtown Accra, served as the headquarters of the country’s first political party - the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC). Forty years later in1992, his family’s Ringway Hotel became the venue of the weekly press conferences for the NPP. That property was later bombed allegedly by an agent of state security under President Rawlings.” “Akufo-Addo was one of the founding members of the New Patriotic Party - the current ruling party of Ghana - in 1992, and was also the founder and first chairperson of the Ghana Committee on Human and People's Rights.” It is great to choose leaders who are next in line but unfortunately, today organizations have no choice but to embrace new technologies, and respond to the rapidly changing marketplace if they want to survive. Many organizations are struggling to find their feet. Influencing people to change customary ways of behaving is a great leadership challenge.

Leadership theories emphasize the role of the leader as an agent or initiator of change. Finding ways and means to cope with the ever-increasing change in the market place would not be easy with a conservative mentality leadership. If leadership were about influencing behavior, then to transform would call for transformational leadership, leaders who inspire their followers to transcend their own self-interests for a higher collective purpose (Burns, 1978). The transformational leadership leads and manages change through teamwork and strategic thinking to help push organizations forward through the inevitable changes it will face. Transformational leadership utilizes strategic thinking to create a vision that ultimately drives change (Chicago, 2004). Characteristics and behavior traits of transformational leaders are not far fetched.

Bennis and Nanus (1985 posit four traits of a transformational leader as the 4 I’s:

1. Idealized Influence: The transformational leader is a role model.

2. Inspirational Motivation: The transformational leader embodies team spirit, motivates, and provides meaning and challenge to the team.

3. Intellectual Stimulation: The transformational leader is creative and innovative.

4. Individual Consideration: The transformational leader acts as a mentor. If transformational leadership were authentic, it would be characterized by high moral and ethical standards in each of the above dimensions (Burns’ (1978) I hope Akufo-Addo would help in reforming the NPP and maintain good rapport with his party folks (especially the foot soldiers) and his constituency. For now we can say that Akufo-Addo has made impressive contribution to the NPP and commands our respect but I say choose some one with a vision not just a rich man.

Let us learn to separate Party loyalty from leadership and vision. One can be visionless and yet very resourceful to his or her party. At this stage I would say Akuffo Addo deserves to be crowned the Father of NPP and be given all the respect and honor that goes with it but elect a leader with a transformed mind.

Knowing that NPP is a party that believes in diplomas and traditions more than practical achievements it may be easy to predict that Akufo-Addo is more likely to be chosen to lead the party in 2008 and I dare him to choose a young running mate with the VISION and drive to compensate for his experience.