Yao Graham challenges new CPP leader to make Nkrumaism real, not history lessons

The National Coordinator of the Third World Network, Dr. Yao Graham says the greatest challenge to the Ivor Greenstreet led Convention People's Party (CPP) is how to wean itself completely from the two biggest party on the country.

He said the perception that the CPP can be rented either to the governing National Democratic Congress or the New Patriotic Party does not bode well for the party.

If anything, the Coordinator for the Third World Network said the party must be able to make the Nkrumaist ideology as relevant as possible to the 21st century population.

"The challenge is how does the CPP not only move away but deal with the perception that it is available to be rented by either the NPP and NDC?" Dr Graham asked whilst contributing to the historic election of Ivor Greenstreet as flagbearer of the CPP.

Greenstreet is the first physically challenged flagbearer to be elected by any political party in the country.

He beat three other contestants, including the immediate past Chairman of the party Samia Nkrumah to the position.

Yao Graham admitted the election of Mr Greenstreet may have come as a surprise to many but was quick to applaud the political credentials of the new flagbearer.

For a party yet to garner up to 2 per cent of the total votes in any of the elections held in the 4th Republic, Yao Graham said Ivor Greenstreet must make realistic the vision of Nkrumah.

He is convinced the Nkrumaist vision is relevant today as it was back then but the apostles of that vision have failed to mesh that vision into the politics of the time.

He said Dr Kwame Nkrumah had to fit his vision into the realities of the time and that worked to perfection.

"How do people who believe in Nkrumah's vision deal concretely with Ghana's political economy and society?" Dr Graham asked.

He was disappointed that the many attempts at preaching Nkrumaism was only to chronicle the historical achievement of Dr Kwame Nkrumah rather than showing how that vision can be put to use in the current political and economic dynamics.

Dr Graham said Ivor Greenstreet and his campaign team should be able to bring some "clarity about Nkrumaism rather than appeal to history it will be important."