Let Fairness Prevail

The vetting exercise of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has come and gone leaving behind a trail of expected hue and cry over disqualifications and so on.

Suspicions of foul play and allegations against persons charged with managing the vetting process have been made here and there. While some of these allegations might be baseless, there is the need to allow the aggrieved to be heard. Perhaps after all, they could have good grounds for a reversal of the decisions taken.

An appeal process has been instituted to deal with the complaints of those who think they have been given raw deals.

There is no doubt that the party is in high demand as many seek to be associated with it. Wherever there is competition for positions such as bearing the flag of a party, as it were, in Parliament, there are bound to be shoving and elbowing.

Similar activities were noticed even on a larger scale when the most coveted position in the party – the presidential candidacy – was on.

At the time that it lasted, some wondered whether in the end the party could emerge in one piece. Indeed, that has happened and the party is marching on as one formidable body of supporters bound by common principles and the ultimate objective of taking over, through elections, the reins of government. That is what political parties are about anyway.

At the end of the day, the unity of the party is what matters and this we implore its supporters and managers to bear in mind. Such frictions are normal in political parties and so we do not agree with those who seek to make propaganda gains with such developments.

For those who feel aggrieved, let them exhaust the channels available to them to seek redress. And for those with the powers to undertake the arduous task of sieving the grievances brought before them and reversing same, let them be fair and adhere strictly to the constitution of the party. The National Steering Committee, which has an important role in this regard, should keep its head up by avoiding arbitrariness.

Even in the advanced democracies from which we are learning, elbowing does take place in such matters but at the end of the day what matters is that the constitution of the political party has been given its due as the only source of reference.

Let all political parties respect their constitutions so that democracy, which we are nurturing, waxes stronger.

Peace in our political parties is paramount for promoting the virtue in the country. It is for this reason that we demand from party supporters and members utmost respect for their constitutions and to eschew anything that would endanger this.

No matter how long the NDC postpones its primaries, that important date would be due one day and they too would have to tread the same path.

It is our wish that when that time is due, they too would allow the constitution of their party to remain supreme and not the wish of individuals.