Rawlings justifies attacks on Mills

Former President Rawlings

The former President and founder of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Jerry John Rawlings, has described all the criticisms against President John Evans Atta Mills' led administration as 'self-correction.'

He noted that instead of allowing the members of the main opposition party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), a party that has been 'rejected' by the masses to tell the ruling party what to do, it was healthy for leading members of the NDC including him to alert the President about the feelings of Ghanaians.

“It would be out of place to allow the NPP that has been rejected by Ghanaians to tell us what we should do. If all members of the NDC and the Members of Parliament have openly come out to express their feelings, then the NPP that has been rejected would have nothing to say."

In an interview with The Chronicle on Saturday, Spokesman for the former President, Mr. Kofi Adams said Rawlings believes, there is need for individuals within the party to hold the government and its appointees accountable instead of their opponents in the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

“All that is going on within the party is self-correction because we all know that President Mills cannot be corrupted and for him to deliver, we need to hold his appointees responsible," he said.

He thus discounted claims that the criticism of President Mills and his administration is a deliberate plot by some members of the party to sabotage him, stressing "I really do not think that anybody within the NDC is out there to undermine the governance."

That notwithstanding, Mr. Kofi Adams said his boss is enthused about the healthy debates going on within the NDC since according to him, it seeks to remind the President of the promises he made to Ghanaians.

"It is good for the party. It will be bad for the NPP to tell us what to do after they have been rejected and if all party legislators and others have come to the realization to let President Mills know about the feelings of party members and Ghanaians, it is good for us.

“This is because, if we allow the NPP to continue to tell us, it would be like a university graduate being corrected by class six pupils," he said.

Unlike the NPP which he claims not to see anything wrong with the actions and inactions of former President Kufuor and heaped praises on him but turn round to accuse him of being the problems of the party, he noted that NDC will criticize Mills when he is going wrong.

This, according to him, would repose more confidence in Ghanaians.

"He believes that we must move faster than this. He does not think that President Mills cannot deliver. President Mills is a man who would deliver but for him to achieve the success for Ghanaians, all his appointees must be held responsible", he emphasized.
For him, what probably would be agitating the minds of Ghanaians are issues such as .the gruesome murder of the Dagbon over Lord, Ya-Na and his kinsmen in addition to Alhaji lssa Mobila and many other matters.

Mr. Adams, who doubles as the deputy national youth organizer of the NDC says if nothing is done quickly, Ghanaians would believe that NDC was following the laid down rules of the NPP.

"If the NDC MPs who represent their constituents are now speaking, it implies that the NDC can correct itself unlike the NPP," he added.

He contended further that despite the fact that brighter days are ahead of President Mills' administration taking into account his capacity and ability, much needed to be done to fast track issues to avoid the current quagmire that the NDC has found itself.