Yentik Gariba Writes: The Outcome Of The Just Ended NPP Parliamentary Primaries Is A Reflection Of A Failed Government

It is an indisputable fact that the outcome of the just ended NPP parliamentary primaries illustrates a clear case of abysmal failure, disappointment, lack of confidence, unprecedented corruption and utter incompetence on the part of the Nana Akufo Addo/Bawumia led-administration.

The recent rating of the performance of Nana Akufo Addo government by the NDC has been attacked and rejected by the NPP as political and untrue. The NDC in its feasibility study of the promises of the NPP discovered that the NPP had promised the people of Ghana 631 promises or projects in their 2016 manifesto.

Interestingly, the NDC fact-finding team has uncovered that the NPP dishonestly scored itself 78% instead of 14% in order to deceive the good people of Ghana once again into believing that they are doing well in terms of development. But discerning Ghanaians will agree with NDC that, the NPP as a party is not oblivious of the fact that they offered Ghanaians 631 promises and that their recent action of understating the promises is not only an insult to the intelligence of Ghanaians but an exposure of the intellectual dishonesty on the part of Dr. Bawumia and his cohorts in their insatiable quest to deceive Ghanaians and hang on to power.

The NPP nicodemously gave itself 78% performance rating against the background of 388 promises instead of 631. This, to many, is an illustration of intellectual dishonesty, reflection of incompetence and deception at the highest level.

It is enlightening to state that when the NDC meticulously conducted a performance appraisal of NPP manifesto, it surprisingly came to light that only 85 of the overly ambitious 631promises were partially or fully fulfilled, which mathematically represents 14% score of the overall achievement of the NPP over their full term as rightly awarded by the NDC. This, to the NDC, is equivalent to a fail or F. The discovery by the NDC comes days before the NPP carried out their said primaries. It is quite instructive to state that the outcome of their parliamentary primaries has vindicated and confirmed the NDC findings and ratings that the NPP has not been able to fulfil even a quarter of its promises to good the people of Ghana. The failed promises meant that the NPP voluminous promises were born out of a grand deception and insatiable desire to win political power for their own parochial interest and not for the ultimate good of Ghanaians. The NPP promised heaven and earth without utter regard to the economic prospects of the country. Their failed promises is amply demonstrated by the unprecedented lack of confidence on the part of the NPP delegates themselves to retain a good chunk of the MPs who formed a significant component of the Nana Akufo Addo/Bawumia led-administration.

The results of the parliamentary primaries where not less than 40 incumbent MPs losing their seats is not only a great source of worry to the government of Nana Akufo Addo but a signal to the presidency that all is not well with his government and administration at large. For over 40 incumbent MPs to fall flat suggests that the NPP themselves have no mercy for their representatives because they have not been satisfied with the performance of the government of Nana Akufo Addo in terms of its promises, fighting corruption and competent management of the economy.

Again, it is significant to mention that not less than nine incumbent MPs who are chairmen and deputy chairs of parliamentary committees have been booted out in the just ended primaries. What does this mean? Your guest could be as good as mine! For such big wigs to lose their seats, you need no prophet to tell you that it is a reflection of a failed government led by Nana Akufo Addo.

Besides the fact that a lot of MPs lost their seats it is equally worth stating that not less than six-seven MPs were imposed on their respective constituencies by Nana Akufo Addo himself. This suggests that had it not that he(president Nana Akufo Addo) had imposed them the actual number of incumbent MPs who would have lost their seats would have been actually more than 40. Why do I say so? If you take the percentage of MPs who stood and lost, you can then deduce that all the imposed MPs could not actually have gone through the race successfully.

The disqualification of aspirants that had characterized the NPP parliamentary primaries suggests that the actual candidates of the people were being prevented from contesting the primaries. And this is a reflection of the undemocratic practices that pertain to the NPP and Nana Akufo Addo. President Nana Akufo Addo, though a legal luminary by profession, his posture with regards to the developments in this country and indeed the happenings in NPP suggest that he has not lived up to expectation as far as his profession is concerned. The blatant closure of media houses, arbitrary arrest and murder of journalists, disregard for civil society organisation, and other important actors of the state, suggest that the rule of law is only on paper in Ghana rather than an operationalized or practised principle.

The defeat of the NPP MPs in the just ended primaries of the NPP is hugely reflecting the total dia appointment and failure if the Nana Akufo Addo government. It means that if Nana Akufo Addo himself had subjected himself to be contested he would have equally lost abysmally because he cannot be insulated from the blame that accounted for their loss because he is the head of the government, and uneasy, they say lies the head that wears the crown. By implication, Nana Akufo Addo would have lost his candidature as a flag bearer if he had allowed himself to be contested. This is because the same delegates would have determined his faith and his faith could not have been different from the incumbent MPs who lost abysmally.

Yentik Gariba

[email protected]

Northeast Region

Nalerigu