Sunday, December 23, 2007

Akuffo Addo and the NPP

pal...pal,

funny things happen everyday!

the self-so-called stalwarts of democracy of our country Ghana, the NPP, have just obtained or found or taken or norminated or acclaimed or chosen or whatever it is that they have done, to have Nana Akuffo-Addo as their presidential candidate.

NPP CONGRESS ???
This is one party that has always made so much heap of noises about how so committed they are to the principles of the rule-of-law and champion internal democracy as a political party and are quick to claim the their opponents don't have same and so are not democratic.

Today this guys go to congress and whilst at it some suspicious folks amongst them get slapped by their own all in the quest to win power! Proceedings is halted as a result for well over an hour amidst CONFUSION but finally they they manage to proceed and ended up 'somehow-somehow' (to quote from the kuffused's speech) by how come 'i-don't-know-how-to-describe' to obtain a presidential candidate!

By their own constitution, according to my hearsay source, to be elected as a leader one must have polled '50% plus one valid vote of total votes' caste. That's a foolish way to define win but that's another topic. I mean 50% plus one? how do you count that? Now, Akuffo-Addo gets less than the required percentage and so does his closest rival Alan Kyeremanteng. So by their own noise of rule-of-law there should simply have been a run-off. Period. But interesting things happen pal, interesting things! Suddenly some machinations go on starting with some unnecessary handshaking (congratulations???) of Akuffo-Addo by Osarfo-Marfo (another contender) which forces the other 15 aspirants to 'roboticaly' do same WHILE VOTES COUNTING WAS STILL ON-GOING and we are finally told by himself that Alan Kyeremanteng has conceded defeat and so Akuffo-Addo is obtained...rightly so? End of Congress!

Meanwhile after the initial results were declared by the Electoral Commission, we were made to know that congress was to decide the way forward. Now you have some few people constituting themselves into 'the congress' 'by-whatever-capacities-they-placed-themselves-in-only-God-knows' inside congress to make a decision on behalf of everybody and the question is whether that decision was truly and properly made by congress? me think that the NPP must pray that none so aggrieved poor fellow would take them to court to battle legalities in the name of their own rule-of-law under the circumstances. A democratic party indeed!

In fact the question can be put straight as to how legitimate the position of Akuffo-Addo is as per the NPP's own constitution?

MATTERS ARISING:
A number of things are worthy of note as to Akuffo-Addo's lead in the race. One, there was some obvious perception that the president was unduly supporting Alan against the other candidates with state resources and this was drummed up against Alan very well. and with the some media men behind him Akuffo-Addo and his gang managed to blow-up a headline of a so-called "Party's Candidate vs the President's Candidate".

Two, the people of the Akyem and Kwahu decent (and all others) especially thought that the Ashantis have hijacked the party for so long and largely believed that this must be their time to take over the lead. They went all out.

Three, all the 17 aspirants spent huge huge huge sums of monies but Alan was well well well resourced and that made him look like the only one spending money and the Akuffo-Addo's gang capitalised on it to to put question marks on his name in the eye of the public.

SUPPORT:
After obtaining the leader the rest went ahead to pledge their support in order to see that the NPP is preserved in power (for the next fifty years according to Arthur Kennedy who got only one vote). interesting! but for me the most interesting and seemingly heartfelt statement came from Prof. Frimpong Boateng who did not sound sycophantic like some others and hoped that poverty and other enemies of man would be tackled. makes me wonder that this man rather belongs to the likes of the CPP. i have a lot of questions for him too though but well...

FOOT-SOLDIERS:
This is the tricky one pal. Some people are called foot-soldiers and therefore call themselves foot- soldiers. I keep hearing that party foot-soldiers are not happy because after toiling to bring the party into power they have been neglected. in other words do they mean that they are not given some share of the country's resources to feed on? if so that is foolish.

We must quickly move to let every Tom, Dick and Havi (small pig in Ewe language) know that a political party is distinct from a state and for that matter whether you lay down your life or part of your skin to bring a party into power, it is not guarantee for returns from the state through your party leaders. So let the foot-soldiers get it right and stop disturbing us all. And this goes to all the political parties. A government is there for all citizens and not just some foot-soldiers of a political party in power.

2008 ELECTIONS:
This is going to be very interesting i bet. And i thing the song for this coming election must be change like was sung by people like myself in the year 2000. Pal, We must have a change I believe and i will be telling you more about why i'm wanting so.

3 comments:

Nana Yaw Sarpong said...

No Akyem or "aponkyi" will play tribalism in Ghana politics. I believe our democracy is older than than. Enshrined in our own constitution, political parties must never be formed on tribal or ethnic values!
We must have a change. Well... who to replace NPP? 2008 is half awake. Whether your CPP can marshall the votes, God help them.

Nana Yaw Sarpong said...

No Akyem or "aponkyi" will play tribalism in Ghana politics. I believe our democracy is older than than. Enshrined in our own constitution, political parties must never be formed on tribal or ethnic values!
We must have a change. Well... who to replace NPP? 2008 is half awake. Whether your CPP can marshall the votes, God help them.

novisi said...

well well well... if wishes were pigs...

The important thing to note is that there is always that which is called 'THE REALITY'

it is my wish even if it wasn't in the Ghana constitution that politics be played without silly ethnic foolishnes... but hey! THE REALITY is that THE SILLY ETHNIC FOOLISHNESS is happening.

(AN ASIDE -- me think (NOT BELIEVE) that the ethnic OR REGIONAL OR ORIGIN factor though cannot be downplayed too much when it comes to achieving balance in a multi-tribal nation like Ghana though) -- AND THAT IS THE REALITY.

and no aponkyi therefore can afford to play the ostrich! THE REALITY AGAIN is that it is happening!

if you think me wrong... do u remember the issue with the Vice President's origin ??? ... i don't know if that came from some "kplotoo" or pig!

shine your eyes... for half the solution is living THE REALITY!