Very genuine concerns have been raised by well meaning members of the ruling National Democratic Congress, NDC and Ghanaians generally over what seems to be an intractable situation in the party.
Disunity in any ruling government or political party has serious ramifications for governance. More often, it leaves appointees of government thinking more about their career and future than they do about the real issues facing industry, the business community and families.
The most recent appeal for unity in the NDC has come from the Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Bagbin, MP and Minister for Water Resources Works and Housing. Mr. Bagbin in a recent radio interview made a very passionate appeal for a truce.
He is obviously a man who loves his party and country and certainly not one of those who duck when it comes to raising critical concerns about issues affecting the NDC and government.
The Hon. MP however got it flatly wrong this time. He is wrong to suggest it was not ³proper for a sitting president to be contested at a party primary.² He is wrong to see Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings¹ candidacy as ³not proper² rather than valuing the contribution and difference it will make to our democracy.
Such suggestions are indications of how the government and its appointees are remote and removed from the rest of the country.
Bagbin also spoke about learning from history so as to avoid the mistakes of the past. Certainly Sir!
But how does a democratic process like an internal party contest bring about disunity? The party had been disunited long before Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings announced her bid to run for the leadership of the NDC and lead it in the next Presidential election.
Our history, the history of the NDC shows that the last time we had a coronation instead of a contest, some of our staunch supporters and members left the party and indeed, if history is anything to go by, this is the time to send a message to the country that in our party, all are equal before the law and a sitting president has as much claim to the leadership of the party as the next qualified member.
History is replete with examples of sitting Presidents or Prime Ministers being challenged for the leadership of their party. We also know from history, that political parties which failed to replace their floundering and unpopular leaders have had to pay the ultimate penalty for inaction, which is defeat in a general election.
The most recent example or rather lesson from history is the failure of the UK Labour party to replace Gordon Brown in 2008/9. It resulted in the electoral defeat of the Labour party by the Tories in the 2010 elections, and from the results of that election, Labour could still have been in power if they had had the courage to put up a candidate against Brown.
At a time when the future of the NDC is at stake, some of our friends are talking about POLITICS and business as usual. The test of a serious political party is how it faces its challenges.
What Bagbin is calling for is ³appeasement.² - That the party should appease the government in the name of consolidating power. We all want peace in the NDC. But must the party yield to the aggression of the fair weather friends who have crowded the government with their incompetent cronies and relatives?
Does Hon. Bagbin want us to consolidate political power so that the ³fair-weather friends² that he so passionately told us about can keep their snout in the trough? This is not the time for business as usual.
The first stage of recovery for the NDC is to not have a CORONATION but to recognize that, a section of the party does not have confidence in the leadership of the President, hence the need to subject to process to a contest. What the grassroots will not have is a leadership that lacks the vigour needed to lead the country successfully and if we don¹t change leadership, our own base will punish us in the general election.
Some of our senior and leading members, I¹m sorry to say are playing politics with the future of the party and country. These people think that it is more important to win the next elections than help Ghanaian families now.
We face a powerful and ruthless opposition party, no doubt. The only way to prevail over the New Patriotic Party is for every man and woman in the National Democratic Congress, every man and woman in the country to put the nation first above personal interest.
We cannot win the next election unless we show a strong commitment to improving law and order, helping Ghanaian families with the education of their children, having a vision of where we are going and taking bold steps to restore public trust in politics.
There is no question or doubt about Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings¹ commitment to restoring unity in the NDC. What she must not stand for is appeasement. Unity in the NDC must come on the terms that will protect the objectives for which the NDC was founded - CANDOUR, PROBITY, ACCOUNTABILITY, SERVICE TO COUNTRY AND PARTY.
I do not think the leadership of the party, the government and the Majority in parliament appreciate the seriousness of being slow. Being slow in fixing a broken nation is hurting industry, families and a put off for young voters.
We have officially lost any moral authority to call the NPP corrupt because some of our own friends have their snout in the trough or are involved in activities that leave a lot of question marks.
We have been slow in dealing with the real issues, slow in recognizing that we have a problem and are now gripped by fear of losing the next election. It is simply not enough to be grouchy about losing the next election. The government needs to know that when a country is going down the hill or being slow, it provides impetus for change; a change that will see someone govern and not merely presiding over.
The country is yearning for a leader who will harness the power of technology and the talent of our people; someone who will help improve the competitiveness of Ghanaian business.
I pray to God our friends, and supporters of the government understand that, it nothing personal but a desire to see the best for the country. RAS MUBARAK +4796991447 Norway
+233244478267 Ghana
skype.com/ras.mubarak
