Great expectations
Never was it remembered that this country was going to the polls next December wracked by a general feeling of misgivings about the electoral apparatus, the EC. A leading foundation member of the ruling NPP, Dr Nyaho Tamakloe, describes the EC as the ‘’greatest threat to our democracy’’. He had just previously advised the Commissioner, Mrs Jean Mensa’s husband ‘’tell your wife to do the right.’’ As understood, the advice was solicited by the husband of the Commissioner picking up his thoughts [Nyaho-Tamakloe’s] for a successful ballot. The logical meaning is the ‘’Mensas’’ are concerned about piling electoral roll’s disputations and a long list of public and political complaints, yesterday and now. Mrs Mensa had recently been reported speaking of her discomfort over the heavy security presence around her. In the intervening weeks, the country had been in a nail-biting mood of great expectations as it plods into an election. The excitement is however scoffed in the creeping violence of the tongue which appears to destroy hopes for clean campaigning. A second concern is doubt about fair play, a reference to the electoral roll, reflecting a sense of insecurity. Any examples to cite, as if for proof is ‘’bei dama’’—unprofitable because of common knowledge. Where these might lead is not conjecturable, except that ‘’obeye yie’’-it will be well, a regular faith expression of this country anytime in whatever difficulty.
A reality question though this time is whether this country is a maturing democracy worth citing. I have recently written about a seeming dawn of neo-politics which debate and leave judgment at the bar of public opinion. On the contrary, evidence from top hopefuls to whoever in the contesting political parties hurling disrespect at each other. It is characteristic that our politics have carved a system of asking a discontented country to TRUST them again. The country has obliged in some cases. The wish now had been that there shall be sober examinations of the manifestoes, politicians answering or explaining their new intents for us to choose. It sounds awkward; but it is apparent from goings-on that our politicians may have a refiner way of dodging that exercise, as deduced from current slurs against each other.
The total is the substances to debate are relegated and forgotten. This has been the pattern throughout 67 years after independence. The weight of expectations rests there, great or small, for change– so far, the sorely missing sine qua non-factor. The mischievous interpretation suggests that politicians continue to believe, ‘’Nth’’ time, that the country remains fodder for glib talk with sandwiches of largess. This apparent indictment would either mean there is or might be a mutually orchestrated ruse for recitations of ‘’going to do this, that …’’. And to wit, the country experiences low-rate, swallowing today. This backs up the imperative public opinion’s insistence.
All said, there are great expectations, whatever results we give ourselves, after the elections. Heading the plausible reasons is because everyone has complaints and looks forward to some chips of their choice-relief(s). Overall, the biblical ‘’manna’’ will not fall overnight because no one outside of the incumbent knows how big the economic distress is—debts, payments IMF et al. We generally think of the enormity speculatively. The precise extent is revealed post-elections, usually where there is a new one, which may either recall ‘’countrymen tighten your belts’’ [borrowing from the first Republic parlance when acute hardship was astir. Or, loosen the belts, a rarity in our history.
We all know that it is going to take some whodunit. The cloaked blame is that the heavy-weight political parties are accused of sharing inklings but they refrain from preferring to sell new stocks perhaps for now. It is an impression to tell the country, what they know to align explaining manifestoes they propose for a means to move on the country and people. We have to first locate the problem(s), before deciding on proposed solutions. It will be electorally honesty beneficial for them ultimately These are not early days yet for their Einsteins to work out the maths. I am convinced the best option for whoever carries a brighter future engaging the public all cards heads-up to consciously plead for time for broad consensus to mark time winning an understanding to build nationwide trust, being frank that they are inheritors, unlike Caesar’s heirs.
The NPP’s manifesto is virtually silent on acknowledging a hardship legacy–a seriously sick economy, be specific about [i] modus operandi, trying to get to par with righting what went wrong, [ii] time-schedule for the rehabilitation and [iii] lift-off, estimates, at the least graphically. These are topped with candidate Dr Bawumiah’s reported dismal performance in a meet with the press. The NDC hasn’t particularly disclosed its strategy to take the country out of the woods.
I must confess there are hordes of dubiety:[i] listening and reading both street and conversations on current politicians’ utterances. The damage repair consists of [a] the imperative to insist on being told truths, its leadership leading from the front; [b] the wrangle over to ‘sign or won’t sign’ ‘’Peace Accord’’ pre-balloting. On its own has merit, primarily its underlying deterrent. But its wholesale welcome is injured by memories. The historical brief is that [i] violence hit a previous election. People died. An official inquiry was reported. No action has occurred since. This has fed distrust and forms the bedrock of misgivings, lest…[ii] political leaders issued an undertaking after the intervention of the Asantehene pre-earlier national ballot.
That was shredded outside of the palace in a media statement. The same respected monarch’s advice was also spurned shortly. These twice disappointments have added to the unresolved Ayawaso flareup’s hangover. A more than serious side is the running dispute over the electoral Register. The issuances of notices to security could be ominous each will pull back from the brinkmanship, after all a feature in electioneering though dangerous. Advisedly and hopefully, it ought to be best not thrown into the heat to trigger another.
The foregoing unfortunately boosts stubborn feet voters. It seems widespread. And once it breeds the attitude, kind of distrustful-mindedness which emphasize-defines an election as a do, or die—‘’ all die be die’’. (The reference is not to putrefy controversies; but ’asem na odze asem (nsem) ba’’—’ one palaver accidentally opens a Pandora’s box’). Something else is embedded in our ‘’great expectations’’. It might be argued that it is future palaver; but not because after decades of political partying, our politics will be seized with it post-ballot in December. In the interval, there are a couple of disturbing upshots: [i] politicians continue to side-step issues’ clean debate and the temperature is becoming polluted between the NPP and the NDC; and [ii] a common up-comers for both when the dust settles post-ballot ultimately.
The NPP and NDC shall have to contend with leadership crises until after egos and inordinate ambitions are skittled out. The excitement is about succession, win or loss; and how it pans out. I shall evade the permutations to write the histories of succession per se and leave them to explain what happened: The CPP which ruled 1951-1966 dared not mention who was heir apparent to President Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah. Within the party [and country] however, there was no contesting K.A. Gbdemah. Yet, even the 1961 constitution voids Deputy. You heard whispers claiming a mention let alone talk about that position was anathema. No one could dare beyond to fill in eventual vacuums.
One of the stark consequences is how the CPP gets seasonally besieged with leadership distresses, sort of the centre cannot hold. Throughout the years after the putsch, it looks like a running phenomenon. And persons who might, force themselves to quit. Their merits are that not much of the Leavers has been as treacherous as happened immediately following the military-police ouster Feb 1966. ‘‘Uncle ‘B’ (Kojo Botsio) was an obvious successor because there was no other contestant of his stature. The only one to challenge him was Gbedemah. But he (Gbedemah) had fled the country. [Nkrumah was not going to detain Gbedemah for whatever. He had reshuffled him to Health after Gbedemah had returned seeing US President John F. Kennedy to solicit-negotiate US help for the construction of Akosombo which the Opposition here had raised objections as unnecessary waste (Jockey de-Graft Johnson, Busia, Danquah et al) and pursued Western Governments neither to lend nor participate providing loans. Gbedemah went away per false alarm to further prove how dictatorial Nkrumah was.] However, ‘’Uncle ‘B’ ran himself out of the race, alleged perfidy in the aftermath of the overthrow. Failed efforts to reconcile him and Kwame were curtailed by death.
The NDC stepped into the space in our politics and displaced the CPP as the new or additional bloc to the Left of our politics. Therefore, the NDC are fundamentally the majority youths and declared Socialists with oldy-rump Cipippists who won’t shift their political ideology, joined with Rawlings and his Young Turks. DOMO (NPP) was in decline; politics was put in limbo but resurged. Prof K.A.Busia founded Progress Party (PP) which governed the Second Republic’ It was, truncated and politics re-exiled up to the post-PNDC (which had ousted the Third Republic, Dec 1981), into the Fourth Republic) and subsequent to Prof Albert Adu Boahene’s leadership dropped, the re-assembled DOMO kept a fairly acceptable compromise leadership rotatory system.
In the wake of the end of Rawlings’ terms, 2,000, John Kufuor was agreed by ‘’shadow’’ DOMO to stay on instead of Sammy Odoi-Sykes taking his turn. Kufuor won but he had as many as 19 challengers for his second run. The leadership succession has been stormy since Kufuor, 2008. It had been a parallel ruffling with the NDC after Rawlings had invited Prof J.E.Atta Mills to be his running his second term post-Arkaah’s exit.
Whichever results and between NDC-NPP specifically, tempers are boiling over as the rhetorics get uncouth, confrontational and arguing projections, is moribund. It would seem to leave hopes solely and probably prayers dependent on the Electoral Commission.