Blame Covid-19 and Rawlings’ death for NDC downfall in 2020 – Joshua Alabi

On June 21, 2024, 3:02 AM

Professor Joshua Alabi, the re-appointed Campaign Manager for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama. has attributed the party’s loss in the 2020 presidential election to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the death of the party’s founder, Jerry John Rawlings.

Speaking in an interview, Prof. Alabi highlighted that the pandemic adversely affected the party’s campaign activities, while the incumbent government capitalized on its COVID-19 relief efforts, such as providing food, water, and electricity, as a form of indirect campaigning.

According to him, the party has learnt numerous lessons from their defeat and is committed to resorting to different strategies to achieve victory in the 2024 election.

“So what this means to me is that it has offered me the opportunity to make a critical analysis of what was last time and then see how best we can polish what gaps we had and fix that in the 2024 campaign. As you are aware, in 2020…we had a covid in this country.

“We were released to the campaign around somewhere in July. Yes, we had to set our machinery in place. Of course, setting all your machinery in place from July to December was quite a difficult task for us, but we had to do our best.

“Midway in our campaign again, we had a bad match, and that was the demise of our father, the founding father of the party, John Jerry Rawlings. So we had to truncate our campaign,” he noted in an interview with Channel One TV.

He also underscored that the party will use other strategies like door-to-door canvassing, active engagement with constituencies, and targeted messaging, aimed at presenting the flagbearer in a positive light to voters and securing victory.

He also cautioned party members against complacency, emphasizing the necessity for the party to diligently safeguard its path to electoral success.

“There is a belief out there that the NDC has won the election already. We don’t want to take that because if something belongs to you and you don’t protect it, the thief will take it, so we have to work.

“So we are going to work with various constituencies, we are going to go out there, door to door like we did in 2008, which added up to our campaign, and we are also going to look at our messages and the plan of work, and I am confident that the with all this we’ll get the flagbearer [elected]”.

Meanwhile, the Functional Executive Committee of the party has announced its national campaign team as the nation prepares to go to the polls on December 7, 2024.

The appointments were made following extensive consultations and deliberations.

The National Campaign Team comprises:

1. Fifi Fiavi Kwetey (General Secretary)- Campaign Coordinator

2. Dr. Joseph Yammin (National Organizer)- Deputy Campaign Coordinator in charge of regional campaigns

3. Richard Quashiga- Deputy Campaign Coordinator in charge of parliamentary campaigns

4. Chief Hamilton Nixon Biney- Deputy Campaign Coordinator in charge of Special Operations

5. Sammy Gyamfi- National Communications Officer

6. George Opare Addo- National Youth Organizer

7. Dr. Hanna Louisa Bisiw-Kotei- National Women’s Organizer

8. Alhaji Cole Younger- National Zongo Caucus Coordinator

9. Prof. Joshua Alabi- Head of Flagbearer’s campaign

10. Joyce Bawa Mogtari- Spokesperson, Flagbearer’s campaign

11. Beatrice Annan- Deputy Spokesperson, Flagbearer’s campaign

12. Alex Segbefia- Head of Running Mate’s Campaign

13. James Agyenim Boateng- Spokesperson, Running Mate’s Campaign

14. Eric Adjei- Deputy Spokesperson, Running Mate’s Campaign

Other members of the National Campaign Team are:

1. Richard Anamoo- Representative of the NDC’s Professionals Forum.

2. Shine Gaveh- Representative of the Cadres Front

3. Dr. Nashiru Issahaku

4. Obuobia Darko-Opoku

5. Mary Ewusi

The National Campaign Team shall work under the guidance of a Campaign Steering Committee that comprises:

1. Johnson Asiedu Nketia- Chairman

2. Fifi Fiavi Kwetey

3. Dr. Ato Forson

4. Rt. Hon. Doe Adjaho

5. Alhaji Hudu Yahaya

6. Kofi Totobi Quakyi

7. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo

8. Dr. Kwabena Duffour

9. Betty Mould Iddrisu

10. Julius Debrah

11. Marrietta Brew

12. Dr. Valerie Sawyer

13. Sam Pee Yalley

14. Alhaji Alhassan Ligbi

Story By Grace Tsotsoo Quaye