Posted by Abu Mubarik
It’s pretty obvious that the main candidates for this year’s presidential
race will be between John Evans Atta Mills and ‘John’ Nana Addo Danquah
Akufo Addo. Oh, the John attached to Nana’s name? Well, am told to be a
president in Ghana, you need to bear the name “John”. It is the ticket to
the slave castle or the controversial Flagstaff House.
No disrespect to my comrades in the PNC and CPP. This election is not about
the John and ‘John’. Of course, we are a force to reckon with.
Quick exercise, let’s see how much you know of the candidates. Here are my
presidential quiz, if you get them all right, I nominate you be a
presidential aid.
In each case, identify whether it was Mills or Akufo Addo who made the
statement.
1. Under my leadership, government will set up training centers for
skilled workers like you, which will help harness your talents and develop
your skills
2. And above all, we are going to give Ghana an honest government, not a
corrupt chop chop government like we have now.
3. We believe that with hard work and good
leadership
we can create a society which produces quality jobs for the youth, is
able to provide free education for all to the senior high level and meets
the hopes of its populace.
4. In order for industries in Ghana to have the liberty to grow and
expand, the state must protect them from unfair competition.
5. It is haphazard to govern and make the right choices without reliable
data. Many of the measures discussed in all sections of this paper can only
be envisage if the underpinning analysis is based on reliable information.
6. Unless we industrialize with the goal of adding significant value to
our primary products, be they heavy or primary products, be they or
otherwise, we cannot create the necessary numbers of high-paying jobs that
will enhance the living standards of the mass of our people.
7. Even though the significant expansion of the economy over the last
decade has brought about a higher average per capita income it is still
limited in its capacity to generate decent jobs with decent pay for our
youth.
8. All die be die
9. There will not be woyome scandal under my presidency.
10. Let us make this an election the
result
which will respond to the aspirations of the youth of Ghana.
Never mind, I’ll tell you the answers in a jiffy, but let me say that, by
now, we have a pretty feel of how Mills governs. ‘Rebels’ within the NDC
and NPP may disagree with him but Ghanaians know what they are getting.
In contrast
He was the MP for Akyem Aboakwa for 16 years with little to show for. He
lived moderately quite contrary to his ideological believes-capitalism.
But he has proven to the diehard NPP youth and activist that he is the best
man to lead them. So crucial question to Voters: who is the real John Nana
Akufo Addo?
Personally my gut feeling is that Nana Addo has an inherent socialist
ideology. He might be born and bred in a capitalist family but hey, that is
what I feel. He talks big and tough. Very calm and polite inside but his
worldview is arrogance.
He has a record as a human right activist but was loud silent on the brute
murder of overlord of Dagbon and former Cpp Regional Chairman. Least you
forget, he was the then Attorney General when the Ya-Na incident happened.
Further evidence for Akufo Addo: Before he entered politics he was leading
figure in the group “People’s movement for freedom and Justice”, a human
right group
I personally see Nana Addo as a pragmatist. One who will not be so fixated
on his party’s capitalist ideology.
Most often, political parties that find itself in governance turns to
dictate to the presidency the policy direction it ought to pursue.
President Mills is facing such challenge. We often hear how some microcosm
of the macrocosm of the NPP bigwigs have hijack the NPP campaign team and
virtually dictating to Akufo Addo. Is that the signs of his will be
governance?
Honest time: socialist-capitalist Akufo Addo, who are you? If elected,
which policy direction would you pursue? Will we get a socialist Akufo Addo or
a capitalist Akufo Addo?
Oh the quiz? It illustrates the problem. Akufo Addo made the statement
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at 8:16
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