The ‘New NDC’ CLIQUE MUST FACE THE REALITY OF A NANA KONADU CHALLENGE
It is eminent. The signs are on the wall for everyone to see. And everyone can see except the clique in the so-called ‘new NDC’ around the president who prefer to remain in self-denial. But how much long before they admit that former first lady and President of the 31st DWM NANA KONADU AGYEMAN RAWLINGS will be the main contender for the NDC flag bearer ship in the upcoming party primaries? How long can these people keep deluding themselves just so that they can try to find a way out of defeat when there is obviously no way out?
The grass roots support for Mrs. Rawlings’ candidature has built momentum over the period without a doubt. And mainly from her home region of Ashanti, there have been a general zest over possibilities of her contention for the NDC’s leadership into the next general election. On June4 2010 in TAMALE the northern regional capital, the movement for NANA KONADU 2012 emerged from a group in Ashanti and sent shock waves around the corridors of power. After a lot of hoo-ha, the movement was dismissed by so-called political pundits as a phenomenon that could not take root. They couldn’t be more wrong as even their strategic mass media campaign against this movement failed miserably to douse the flame of this movement that was lit on no other day but on the JUNE4-a historically consecrated day for the NDC as a party. Let me remind those within the ‘new NDC’ and suffering from historical amnesia that it was on this same JUNE4 in SWEDRU in the central region that President Rawlings the NDC founder ‘anointed’ Prof. Mills against mounting opposition within the NDC to become party leader. What it means is that any popular movement started within the NDC on that consecrated day of JUNE4 has never failed, will not fail and cannot fail. Mark it if you have a wall.
Interestingly, people who should know the NDC tradition better are found wanting in the wake of an eminent challenge to the establishment. People have suddenly become afflicted by avarice to the extent that they will live in self-denial until they’re submerged in defeat. How sad!
Supporters of Mrs. Rawlings have besieged towns and villages with posters in open and undisguised support for her. They have gone beyond posters to print T-shirts boldly and courageously expressing their belief in NANA KONADU AGYEMAN RAWLINGS. They have even developed a website to electronically propagate her ideals. Whiles at it, the supporters have called on the former first lady who obviously stands tall in any leadership contest within the NDC to rise to the occasion when the party lifts the ban for internal contest. Like the true leader that she is, Mrs. Rawlings has remained calm. She has obviously been listening to all the voices—not only of the fake pollsters as BEN EPSON whose concocted polls have been long exposed—but also of the mass and popular movement willing to champion her cause of a real change. Cognizant of the NDC’s rules of engagement, and the crucial need to uphold these rules, Mrs. Rawlings has remained loudly mute over the issue even at the chagrin of her legion of supporters such as me.
What is more? People have forcibly linked her to the activities of the movement for NANA KONADU 2012 with the provably false chorus of ‘she is behind it. She is testing the waters’ and so on. Suddenly, in the warped minds of these boot lickers afraid of change, there cannot be spontaneous mass movement in this country in support of real change. And these are people whose political present has been largely propelled by mass movements in the past. How interesting!
Only avarice can make a leadership forget their history so quickly.
We know that even as the ‘new NDC’ cabal continue to publicly deny the possibility of change to the NDC leadership for 2012—obviously for the protection of their boot-licking allowances—the senior members have been making moves to establish beforehand the true state of mind of Mrs. Rawlings regarding the demands of her supporters. It was therefore not news when the Daily Guide newspaper reported of a meeting that had taken place between the council of elders of the NDC and Mrs. Rawlings. This is not the first meeting to get her to state her position. The NEC and the FEC has previously met with her and tried to draw an imaginary link between her and the activities of the movement clamoring for her but to no avail. They have severally tried to find fault with her—even asking her to openly denounce the activities of the movement clamoring for her—just as the vice president John Mahama and party chairman Dr. Kwabena Adjei openly denounced the hard working party foot soldiers after winning power on their backs.
She wisely refused to denounce the people.
Experienced as they are, the party elders have refused to give up. And they recently met with the former first lady in the presence of her husband and party founder Jerry John Rawlings. Their mission was simple—to find out if she will contend for the party leadership when nominations are opened. According to leaked reports—and this came from some members of the same council of elder—she was blunt and straight to the point—I shall pick up nomination forms and run for NDC flag bearer when nominations to satisfy the will of our grass root movement which is yearning to be given back its original ideals. This is nearly official only unannounced to the general public.
The Daily guide leaked report claim that the members were shocked at the admission by Mrs. Rawlings. But my own understanding is different. Rather, the majorities of the members were excited about it—so excited to the extent that some of them quickly leaked the information to the press to the chagrin of the unrelenting cabal who insist on no contest with President Mills. As one of my comrades suggested, if President Mills wants no contest, he should join the CPP which he has devotedly served since he assumed power. This is a democratic congress!
The clique around the president has done their best to deny that Mrs. Rawlings disclosed her plans to the council of elders. The greater Accra regional chairman who also leads the illegal NDC chairmen of chairmen Mr. Addey Coker was quick to deny that any such issue was raised during NEC meeting. The general secretary of the NDC also took the same posture and dismissed the Daily Guide leaked report. Others were all over the airwaves denying—and even swearing that no such disclosure was ever made. Unfortunately, these denials have not been vehement enough to wish away the eminent challenge staring at the face of the NDC leadership; neither do they completely erase the truth inherent in the leaked report. The fact still remains that the NEC meeting was not the meeting of the council of elders. And none of the people denying is a member of the council of elders. So: wherein lays the credibility of their denials?
But the question really is; why are these people desperately denying themselves and the Ghanaian people the TRUTH about this eminent challenge? Is it to buy time so they can convince the party founder whom they now believe to be the only person capable of stopping his wife before a public announcement is made? I’m not in the mind of the NDC founder but I double doubt if the former President will waste his ears on such pleadings. Why? Was former President Rawlings not touted as undemocratic when he single-handedly endorsed and promoted Prof. Atta Mills as leader of the NDC? Did people not leave the party in protest of what they deemed an undemocratic selection of Prof. Mills as NDC leader? Will the founder avoid an opportunity this time round to correct what many consider a mistake in the past by stampeding his wife, and blocking the popular will of the people? I continue to double doubt it knowing how pragmatic the NDC founder has been over the period.
The paradox in all of this is that the same people who keep shouting at the top of their corrupted voices that Mrs. Rawlings will have no iota of a chance in contending with President Mills for the leadership slot for 2012—these are the same people who will deny the reality of the idea until they’re faced with a public announcement. They dread the idea of her wanting to contest President Mills—and they claim she has no chance against him.
Which is which? It definitely cannot be both. I can’t wait for a public announcement from Mrs. Rawlings. And let those living in self-denial understand the meaning of a DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS!
SaCut Amenga-Etego (NDC Youth with conviction of principle)
