Has NDC slain its overbearing father?

Jerry Rawlings fidgeting with his phone whiles Mrs Rawlings attempts to get his attention

The NDC MP for Adenta, Kojo Adu Asare, believes the resounding beating delivered the Rawlingses is a good omen for the ruling party which he said had suffered unjustified humiliation at the the hands of the party's founder and his wife.

According to him, the party was dead beat about the overbearing attitude of former President Jerry John Rawlings and thus had to reduce him to size.

The NDC, during its just ended congress in Sunyani totally rejected the former first family as Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings obtained a mere 3.1 percent of total votes cast as against the more than 96 percent President Mills had.

Prior to the congress, several attempts were made to cause Mrs Rawlings back down on her ambition with some leading figures of the party publicly noting their hopes she would allow the President to go unopposed but she stood her grounds.

On Peace FM's current affairs programme Kokrokoo Monday, Mr Adu Asare, who was commenting on the conduct of the congress, said the former First Lady subjected herself to the crushing defeat and humiliation as a result of her stubbornness.

He also accused members of her campaign team - Friends Of Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings (FONKAR) – of ill advising her and causing disenchantment towards her within the party.

Further, Mr Adu Asare noted that attitudes exhibited by FONKAR members during the campaign period along with Mrs Rawlings' wrong timing also contributed to her rejection by the delegates.

He urged the Konadu supporters to accept the verdict and desist from allowing their personal sentiments to destroy the unity in the party as they strategise towards the 2012 elections.

Quoting from the book, '48 Laws of Power', the Adenta MP stressed how crucial it was for one to be patient and plan according to the appropriateness of the moment.

“Never seem to be in a hurry…hurrying always portrays a lack of control over yourself and over time; always seem patient as if you know that everything will come to you eventually.”

“Space we can recover...but time never,” he emphasised, saying that if one fails to time oneself properly things could go as bad as they went for the Rawlingses.

“Become a detective of the right moment, sniff out the spirit of the times, the trends that will carry you to power. Learn to stand back when the time is not yet rife…” he added.

According to the MP, the delegates' re-election of President Mills to lead the NDC in the next general elections was to signify their immutable confidence in his leadership.

He inferred that the fact that ex-president Rawlings had in the past been successful as a ruler did not necessarily mean his wife could also be a good leader.

“Avoid stepping into a great man's shoes,” he admonished, because

“what happens first always appears better and more original than what comes after. If you succeed a great man or have a famous parent, you will have to accomplish double their achievements to outshine them.”

“Do not get lost in their shadow or stark in a past not of your own making, establish your own name and identity by changing course.”

He concluded by stating: “slay the overbearing father, disparage his legacy and gain power by shinning in your own way.”

Story by Dorcas Efe Mensah/myjoyonline.com/Ghana