NDC In A State Of Dilemma

It’s undeniable fact that the largest and strongest opposition party, NDC finds themselves in a difficult situation as to who should be their presidential candidate come 2020 general elections. The element in the party is rapidly glowing and time is gradually running out so it was necessary for the party now that they are in opposition to quickly swim in the river in preparation for the daunting task ahead of them as their political rivals are doing everything possible to effectively deliver its campaign promises before the next general elections.

Not long ago news that broke in was that about 90 NDC members of parliament have declared their unflinching support for the former president John Dramani Mahama and surprisingly Ghanaians woke up only to hear that some of them have come out to debunk that statement of endorsing the gentleman from Bole Bamboi who led them to retain power in 2012 to ensure they had normal 8 year tenure Ghanaian electorates had offered any political party as false since Ghana became a democratic state.

Ghanaians were itchy to see the NDC would organize a press conference to declare a date set aside for their demonstration against the president for dismissing the EC chairperson Madam Charlotte Osei but surprisingly, Mr. Asiedu Nketia the party’s general secretary came out to say that all interested persons who have the desire to contest the presidential primaries can pass by the Party’s headquarters to pick a nomination form to follow the due process now that no aspirant will be made to go unopposed.

Interestingly, few days after General Mosquito’s advice to the NDC fraternity to make sure they do their campaign devoid of personal attacks and insults in order to maintain the peace and unity that they have enjoyed after suffering a humiliating defeat in the hands of a man they said that they were going to retire from active politics some stalwarts of the party turned a deaf ear and came out strongly to declare JDM as incompetent and should not be given another chance. Although they have at the back of their mind the possibility of him winning the contest and their personal attacks on his credibility would be disastrous for the party as they will have to devote their precious campaign time in doing damage control.

They are aware the choice they make in terms of who leads them will surely determine the outcome of their chances in 2020 and as such it is crucial to make the right choice and not to gamble at all to worsen their woes. Before the 7^th December, 2016 general elections all who matter in NDC did not spare our ears of the good work their presidential candidate had done across the length and breadth of the country to prove he is the only president who has done what Napolean could not do with regards to infrastructural developments and till date most of the party’s communication structures according to them believe that NPP used lies and deceit in getting power.

Their communicators are fond of saying that “Ghanaians have sold their colour televisions for Black and white televisions” which literary means Ghanaians have rob Peter to pay Paul which to them that their governance was far better than that of their political rivals. As we speak they cannot stick their neck for JDM whose legacy was what makes them think that Ghanaians have done a great mistake by not keeping them in the reins of government.

It’s a pity! The main opposition party finds themselves in this difficult situation as to whether they should maintain a losing candidate who is much more popular than his fellow contestants or replacing him with fresh candidate who has a name in positions he served in government and might not pose any threat to NPP. They still believe NDC can bounce back in 2020 since John Dramani Mahama is already known and he is still marketable and will make their campaign easier even though he is been tagged by some NDC members as incompetent all because of rough tactics in politic.

Ghanaians who follow politics believe that NDC’s National Executives and their members have severe headache and sleepless night simply because most of the aspirants whose supporters are today claiming JDM was incompetent surprisingly failed to advise them to resign from the various positions the same incompetent man offered them, then they have a course to raise concern about the fact that some people within his government deliberately made him fail so that they could easily end his political carrier entirely.

There are some members who also think JDM should be giving a second chance since he has beaten the sitting president before in 7^th December 2012 presidential contest and after all, he who fights and run away live to fight another day and he can provide the resources the party needs in their campaigns. Some members also think rebranding the party for the future with a fresh Presidential candidate will help them because Ghanaians since the 1^st republic have offered political parties 8 years in the reins of government but also think Ghanaian electorates are unpredictable and presenting JDM will better NDC’s chances of securing power 2020.

Ghanaians believe that for the growth and development of our democracy and our dear nation, Ghana, there should be a strong and reliable opposition that will put the ruling government on its toes in making sure the good people of Ghana are assured of good governance. Because we had a formidable opposition to come out strongly to kick against the alleged dubious Ammeri re-negotiation deal which could be hanging on our neck at the expense of the tax payer and the ordinary people. The opposition deserves full credit for whipping the government into line.

Clandestine reports have it that some party faithfuls who are behind the scene and have not come out openly to declare their support for any aspirant whose name is making waves want the party to opt for Professor Kwasi Botchwey the former Finance minister under Rawlings’s regime who is respected by Ghanaians for his dedication, hard work and good services to this nation as the right man to save the party from tearing apart simply because they need a presidential candidate to lead them to 2020 general elections.

Some Political analysts have also joined the fray simply because the NDC finds it difficult to stick out their neck for a particular candidate and their passionate appeal to the party is that the best way to go is to groom a new person after the exit of the former president JDM from power. They are worried over the increasingly number of factions which have found their ways into the camp of the major opposition party all because of the presidential contest which can lead to a one-party state if they fail to present a united front.

With the reasons given above, there is no disputing the fact that the members of the main opposition party, NDC, find themselves in a state of quandary. Michael Kessey- (Akissiway)