Long-term MP Alban Bagbin, veteran diplomat Victor Gbeho and one D.K. Osei, a former Consul General of Ghana to Dubai (not an Ambassador), have gone public with major unprovoked attacks against the best-known face of the NDC, former President John Dramani Mahama.
It is true, in the eyes of the Lord and the Law, no human is above reproach or criticism; this commentary is therefore not meant to deny them their rights to the freedoms enshrined in our constitution but simply to point out the political hara kiri, they are driving their party to at this crucial stage of the party’s bid to capture power in 2020.
Granted, they do not represent the mainstream mindset of the NDC, but the nuisance value of their actions goes to add to the NPP’s grand strategy of anti-NDC “ugly noises” designed to destabilise the party as Election 2020 draws ever closer.
Their unbridled campaign of vilification against President Mahama, they may think is damaging the former President’s chances in his bid to lead the NDC into Election 2020, but strategically, they are in fact doing damage to their party’s cohesion. For a rabidly anti-NDC and servilely pro-NPP publication like the Daily Guide to be avidly lapping up their effusions on its front pages, that should tell them something: It suits the NPP’s interests!
The NDC will be campaigning on Mahama’s achievements, unless, they are saying that Mahama achieved nothing from 2013 to 2016! If that is their thinking, then they should burn their NDC membership cards and apply for NPP’s. Let us not forget that President Mahama took office with a hamstring that took a whole one-year chunk away from the 4 years allotted to him, due to the so-called Pink Sheets case at the Supreme Court. It is most remarkable what he was able to achieve within that time.
In the international arena, he was and still is the “Show Boy” of the international community, leading the way in many admirable leadership actions, like the fight against the ebola virus and troubleshooting sub-regional hotspots. In recognition of such feats the then UN Secretary General Ban Ki Mun, appointed him, with the Norwegian Prime Minister as co-chairs of the Advocacy Group of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). President Mahama was very central in crafting the AU’s Africa Continental Free Trade Area protocol. Since leaving office, he has become much sought after for international assignments, for example, as an Election Observer. The accolades could go on and on…
As a human being, of course, in all that brightness, there are also patches of sunspots, and he is not infallible. Such spots would continue to bedevil all human activities, especially in politics and governance – areas that deal with human welfare, predilections, emotions and indeed mischief! What did the NPP not throw at President Mahama and the NDC during the campaign period? But look at the checklist: after all the promises, 2 years into the NPP administration, the crosses are piling up thick and fast! There are many people, indeed, including NPP supporters, who agree that if elections were held today, John Mahama, would thump Akufo-Addo hands down!
That is the kind of optimism the NDC needs now, not pessimism and divisiveness. The “attackers” are not only showing themselves up as spoilsports, but also behaving like the chicken in the Dagbane proverb, which would not drink the water in the bowl but then upset it so that in the end no one gets to drink from the bowl! You are not tall just because others around you are shorter than you. You will not be better just because you say someone is not good. Tell us what new insights you are bringing that are above and beyond what the NDC and John Mahama have achieved for the people of Ghana
Attacking President Mahama would not supply the remedies to the dangers posed by the Ghana Card threat to our democracy; it will not provide solutions to our Senior High Schools mess; it will not provide the enlightenment our political ethos is crying out loudly for…In fact, there is no need to belabour this and as the saying goes, “A word to the wise is enough” or the variation that never fails to bring a smile to my face, “A word to the wise is in the North”! Yes indeed!
By Oli Rahman, Tesano, Accra
