NDC Must Not Repeat the Mistakes of 2016

The warning is simple, but the truth behind it is bitter: a political party cannot abandon its grassroots and expect the grassroots to remain permanently loyal.

For too long, some party leaders have treated the grassroots as election-time machinery. When elections are far away, the ordinary party member is forgotten. When elections draw near, the same people who ignored their calls suddenly remember their names, visit their homes, attend their funerals, and speak passionately about party unity.

That is not leadership but a political convenience.

The grassroots are not a disposable workforce. They are the foundation of the party. They campaign in the heat, defend the party when it is unpopular, mobilise voters, contribute their resources, and sometimes make enormous personal sacrifices without recognition. Yet, when the party gains power, some of those who fought hardest are treated as though they do not matter.

That attitude must end.
If you love the NDC, you cannot be selfish with the party. You cannot enjoy the benefits of political power while ignoring the people who made that power possible. You cannot remember the grassroots only when you need votes.

Pick up your calls. Return messages. Visit the constituencies. Listen to the complaints of ordinary members. Recognise those who have served. Give people a sense of belonging. Treat party members with dignity, whether or not they hold an office.

And let nobody deceive themselves: Ghanaians are becoming more discerning. People are watching. They are comparing words with actions. They are asking who stood with them when they needed help, who remembered them after the elections, and who only appeared when another campaign was approaching.

The party must understand that loyalty is not inherited. It is earned and renewed through genuine care, fairness, and consistent engagement.

The NDC cannot afford a culture in which a few people become comfortable while the people who built the party remain frustrated. It cannot afford leaders who believe that holding office makes them more important than the ordinary member. It cannot afford to silence legitimate concerns in the name of party unity.

Unity without fairness is not unity. It is silence imposed on the disappointed.

The truth is bitter, but it must be said. If the party continues to neglect its grassroots, it will eventually weaken the foundation on which it stands.

This cannot a division but a need for responsibility. Leaders need to remember that political power is a trust, not a personal entitlement.

The NDC must return to the people now and not during elections, but every day. It must rebuild relationships, restore confidence, and demonstrate that the ordinary party member is not important only when votes are needed.

Let us not wait until 2028 to discover that the grassroots are angry. By then, the damage may already be done.

The time to correct the mistakes of 2016 is now.

Love the party. Love the grassroots. Respect those who fought for it. And never take their loyalty for granted.