After the historic Sunyani Coronation, one would have thought that all plans to unseat Pres Mills was over. Although he remains the flagbearer of the NDC, there is a serious conspiracy within the ruling party to blackmail the Mills led administration and to make him unmarkettable to the Ghanaian electorate. Don´t make a mistake, this attack is not from Papa J. He is busy in Somalia. Schockingly, Prominent among the people leading this plot are Vice president; H. E. John Dramani Mahama, Social Welfare Minister; Hon E. T. Mensah, Embattled candidate for Flagbearership position of NDC and the wife of party founder; Nana Kunadu Agyemang Rawlings, spokesperson for the former first family and A Deputy General Secretary of the same ruling party, Kofi Adams and Ras Mubarack an NDC youth activist and a stunch member of the ruling party. The remaining task will be carried out region by region by youth groups and other supporter groups in the form of demonstrations and press conferences.
The reason for this mischievous plan has eluded many including me. A message has been cooked for public consumption which will erode away any remaining reputation the already tired law professor has got. The aim is to let Ghanaians, especially those at the grassroots detest his style of leadership and to simply get tired of him even before 2012. It is aimed at revealing his shortfalls to the general public. Being people close to the presidency, anything they say about Pres Mills is believed to hold a lot of water. Therefore, if such prominent members of the ruling party comes out to condemn their own presidential candidate it will easily stay with the public and signal a great defeat ahead of 2012. This possibly will lead to a call for his replacement before the election. Then veep will be handed the position with Nana Konadu as running mate.
It has been planned to mute all his praises and sound louder his errors. In essence when evil is said about someone these elders know that it travels faster. They have therefore decided to lunch the stinky elements into the air to diffuse any good anybody at all may preach about the president. The focus and particular direction of the conspiracy is starting with the difficulty his leadership has brought to Ghanaians.
The first to start the smearing campaign against the president is the vice president. The one closest to him. Because if it had come from Nana Konadu or Kofi Adams critics would have said it is a FONKAR game. So the veep starting it was a perfect plan. So that when the others did it later, it will only look like a buttress of an already made point.
The vice on his part, to highlight on the rise in cost of services, complained bitterly that Hotel Prices had shot up too high. As quoted by the Deputy NDC General Secretary he said; "Most of our four-star hotels charge beyond $200.00 and $250 a night which is expensive....". The whole vice president was complaining that Hotels are charging too high just this last February. If the second gentleman of the state is complaining that cost of services have gone up under the watch of the president who dare challenge such a revelation.
Immediately after him was Hon E T Mensah, the Minister For Social Welfare who on his part also made it known how expensive Ghana has become under the watch of Prof Mills when he said; "tourists who visit the country spend four times the amount they would have spent if they went to another African country.". Apart from revealing the hardship Mills brought to Ghana he was also virtually driving out potential tourist who may have listened to this statement. One thing stands clear, both the Minister and Veep are in agreement that The Mills led NDC has brought an unpresidented level of hardship upon the people of Ghana and anyone who mistakenly finds himself in Ghana in these bad times: The times when Mills was president. In Parliament, it was the same Hon E. T. Mensah who down played the claims by Deputy Information Minister, Okudjeto Ablakwah that their government had created 1.6 million jobs in their first one year. He made Ghanaians know the liars this Mills appointees are. He vehemently refused to sing the Mills campaign song of creating such jobs despite the winks he noticed from the majority in parliament. An information that had been widely spread on all media houses. E T performed his own part of the plot so well.
When it came to the turn of Nana Kunado aka Madam BOLD as many will expect, she took her chances and punched hard at "Tika". She was in the middle of prominent African women drawn from 25 different countries. At the same venue there were journalists and other Ghanaians. Spectators also followed to the venue. The land was fertile for any propagation and she did it well, saying: “By the time you leave here, you will find out that Ghana is one of the most expensive countries on this continent today. Very, very expensive. We have to find a away of knocking that down,” she stated. "If we cannot go into serious production. I think that we are going to have a lot of problems.” “If we are able to go into massive production of various things or in various areas, it will help reduce the number of people who are not working because I have a vision but that vision is to see that young people are employable and are employed because it is possible." “I believe the economy can be run differently.” “We have to put young people to work and we have to train them so that indeed they can be put to work.". Read her second line well: "very, very expensive" she stressed. In the days of Mills your dollars won't be enough. Ghanaians are dying.
The Deputy NDC General Secretary came on the scene as if to defend his Madam but further added insult to injury. When he was asked about the assertion of Nana Konadu that Ghana has become too expensive he simply confirmed it, that what his madam said was not in dispute, in other words it is an established fact that during the reign of Mills, Ghana has become very very expensive. He then added his own contribution: “Gradually, Ghana in some areas is becoming very expensive.". He stressed. "I happen to be in the Western Region…in 2009, this year I happen to visit Western Region again and cost of some basic things have all of a sudden shot up,” he said on Joy FM’s news analysis program Newsfile Saturday which is also telecast on MultiTV. This is not a song from Nana Addo's camp. Pres Mills' own vice, his minister, his party founder's wife and his own party deputy General Secretary are the ones trumpetting the difficulty he has subjected Ghanains to.
Immediately after Kofi Adams' performance was Ras Mubarack who boldly polluted the air waves with his comments which was headed; our politicians are sick. He severely lambashed the Mills led administration for the decision to buy five jets at a go, when unemployment is at its peak, when poverty is burning people like wildfire, when the ordinary Ghanaian was at the brink of collapsing due to economic hardship. He even charged the NPP to do all within its power to halt the extravagant and unnecessary expenditure. The guy was so serious that he suggested a "mutiny" of the youth against wicked old politicians like Mills who had no good thought of the young ones. Just read his own words: “We don’t need the kind of expenditure that we are making. The opposition should oppose the deal and call for cuts in military expenditure,” the NDC youth activist said. “we don’t need the kind of expenses that we are making; buying five military jets at a cost of 250 million dollars”. He stressed.
Ras threw more light on how unnecessary this whole deal is, The unrepentant critic of the Mills’ administration opined that such borrowing will only “pile up debts for tomorrow’s children”, saying, “it is unsustainable and outrageous”. To him, instead of the minority agreeing to the deal “in principle”, the opposition party should rather “be opposing the deal and be calling for cuts in areas that do not bring about immediate tangible benefits”. According to him the government’s decision to purchase those five military jets should incite the young people of this country to start fighting to be leaders because the country’s leaders have failed. Remember the last attack will be done by the youth as I told you, so he was calling them to action. The country's leaders he said. Who is leading now? Mills, so if the leaders have failed what of Mills? He has failed DOUBLE.
“I think this gives an opportunity to the young people of our country to start fighting to be leaders today because the men who are running our country are sick; they are not really addressing the real issues confronting Ghanaian families,” Ras Mubarak said. Mills is double sick because he is the number one leader. He(Mills) rushed this particular deal to parliament without even counsel of state approval. All these punches are from within N D C.
Instead of addressing these issues and difficulties facing Ghanaians they are busy buying presidential jets fitted with a million dollar entertainment gadgets.
The Akuapems have a saying that "ade a enye de na enye.". Pres Mills administration stincks of incompetence and his own people are leading the front to make it known. Mills has not been able to address the need of the ordinary Ghanaian. Their pains and sufferings has increased since he came to office. These sincere men could no more hide their feelings but to say it loud. I was in Bolga in late 2008. A guinea fowl was 30 to 35 cedis. I bought five to Accra. When I asked my friend Yesterday he said one was now between 100 and 120 cedis. I could not speak a word. Meanwhile we are told inflation is in a single digit since 2009. Living has become unbearable under Mills.
The last segmant has already began with the stronghold of NDC, Volta Region (at Hohoe to be precise) openly showing its displeasure in the leadership of Pres Mills. In Tema another voice was heard. Tamale is fuming with anger and in the next few days we will all receive the message. Azorka the provider of the 1800 security men is under fire. These are just the beginnings.
This is the consporacy, their thoughts and pronouncements rhyme: Ghana has become too expensive under Mills.
Vote for a change that will reflect in your living condition come 2012. Even leaders and supporters of NDC knows that president Mills have failed. Vote for Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo.
Noah D Asare. Frankfurt, Germany.
