In a matter of days, the largest opposition party in Ghana, The National Democratic Congress (NDC), will be going to the polls to elect its national executives to steer the affairs of the party for the next four years.
The key mandate of those elected will be to reorganize, re-strategize and reposition the NDC to wrestle power from the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) whose performance in government is a-far-cry from the numerous mouthwatering promises that brought them to office.
The General Secretary’s (GS) position becomes one of the most hotly contested in this race. It remains a straight fight between the incumbent Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketia and his Deputy Koku Anyidoho.
In that light, the Probity and Accountability Forum (PAF), a forum with the aim to propagate good governance principles for political leadership and national development, has resolved that, Mr. Asiedu Nketia having served in that office for three consecutive terms, has paid his dues and must therefore step aside. Clearly, the 2016 elections results is a true testament of his fatigue and a clear sign that the ‘General’s’ invincibility had been broken and has lost his shine.
It therefore natural that his capable and hardworking deputy Koku Anyidoho takes over the administration of the party going forward. Having served as Director of Communications under the late President Mills and a deputy General Secretary of the great NDC, Koku Anyidoho has grown the requisite temperament and experience necessary to serve as the new General Secretary of the party. It is remarkable to note that Koku has two masters’ degrees to his credit and as a former Banker before joining politics; he has imbibed the necessary corporate governance culture to handle the affairs of the great NDC.
It is noteworthy that Mr. Anyidoho has not only got the right leadership qualities and dynamo to effectively manage the affairs of the party but competitively match the NPP machinery and lead us to victory in 2020.
At this crucial moment, the NDC needs a General Secretary whose preoccupation will be NDC, NDC, NDC and not one who will be occupied with becoming a Chairman of a Board or cutting blocks when the critical job needs to be done. It is for this reason that, we encourage every NDC member including delegates and Asiedu Nketia himself to embrace the “Party First” agenda being propagated by comrade Koku Anyidoho.
The NDC needs a new direction, and that is what the majority of our compatriots are saying, which is reflective in the branch, constituency and Regional elections. Even at the just ended National Youth and Women executive elections, the results are clear for all to see that NDC’s true stakeholders are calling for fresh legs, brains and ideas to take us to the new level of conquering NPP at the polls in 2020. This is indeed a demand placed on us to change the face of the party going into the general elections come 2020.
The party has over the years been accused of having lost the moral high grounds as enshrined in the Values of Probity, Accountability and social justice. Many including the founder H. E Jerry John Rawlings believes that it is the departure from this values that culminated into the electoral defeat of 2016. To reverse this, Koku Anyidoho as General Secretary will work assiduously to return the party to these core values and make it more attractive to the teaming youth and floating voters.
As General Secretary, Koku Anyidoho will work with other stakeholders including cadres to unite the front of the party in other to bring on board all aggrieved members who have either become dormant as a result of one thing or the other so we can collectively fight to restore power come 2020- *in unity lies our strength*. We are at the crossroads and it behoves on us to make a choice between maintaining the status quo and losing the general elections or changing the status quo and winning elections 2020.
The NDC has a duty to save Ghana from the open defilement of our virgin minerals, the chocking tax regime, escalating fuel prices and the gross disregard and disrespect to the masses. The collapse of the banking sector, the dollar on the run and the educational sector, which is almost caput. Every day we wake up to either an embrace of a job loss or a handshake from unemployment. To respond appropriately we need a robust General Secretary to rally the forces of the party behind the flagbearer who God willing will be H. E JOHN DRAMANI MAHAMA. That robust character is Koku Anyidoho the man for the New NDC.
We call on comrades and delegates of the party to once again reflect on our painful defeat in 2016 and the role that the General Secretary played as Chairman of a campaign that remains the most financed in our history to the extent that, his own Brong Ahafo region had to fall for the NPP in a calamitous way. In our view, if he truly loves the NDC, he should have taken an honourable position not to contest again just like Mr. Kofi Adams.
We hereby empathize with President Mahama when he questioned the use of Party resources under the leadership of the General Secretary. It is not strange for the former leader to say, the resources meant for the party structure were diverted. This undoubtedly re-echoes the ineffectiveness of Mr. Asiedu Nketia.
We wish to therefore use this moment to call on Mr. Asiedu Nketia to do two things:
- Render account for resources meant for the 2016 elections
- Honourably stepdown from the race.
Long live Ghana
Long live the NDC
……. Signed…..
RICHARD FIDEL AGBEKO
Coordinator, Probity and Accountability Forum (PAF)
KUMAH QUASHIE
Research Director, Probity and Accountability Forum (PAF)
