NDC MPs Back Bagbin �As They Prepare To Meet Mahama

AS the storm of anger over the supposed inaccessibility and indecisiveness of President Mahama begins to settle, The Daily Heritage has picked credible intelligence from impeccable sources at the nation�s Legislature that over three quarters (�) of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament (MPs) are solidly behind their former leader, Hon Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin in his political and media tug-of-war with the leader of the NDC and the President of Ghana, President John Dramani Mahama. Reliable information, backed by a testimony from an MP from the majority side of the August House said the former Majority Leader has won the admiration of majority of his colleagues for boldly expressing their views in public, that the President is gradually moving into the wrong direction and the sooner he is re-directed into the right tract the better it would be for the future of the NDC and the government itself. At a meeting of the Majority Caucus in Parliament yesterday, the MPs together with some of their colleague ministers lamented the sad state of affairs in the party at the moment and vowed to do everything under their power to stem the tide of disillusionment in the party and within the general Ghanaian population. The meeting, which was convened at the Speaker�s Office in Parliament, was done behind closed doors with the objective of brainstorming in order to find everlasting solutions to the on-going internal bickering and face-to-face media wars that have the potency of disintegrating the ruling NDC. At the meeting, various shades of opinions were expressed by the MPs and the ministers with the majority taking the side of the Nadowli-Kaleo MP and former minister of Health, Hon. Bagbin and expressing solidarity support for his boldness in calling the bluff of the President and his defenders. �Yes, we deliberated on the current challenges facing our government and our party and the way forward�you know the recent media controversy between our colleague MP and former Leader of this House and the President of the land. We are trying to face the President and make our views known to him on what is going on in government. Ghana is a democratic country and so everybody has the right to express his views no matter how unpleasant they might seem. �We think the former Leader said certain things that we agree with, but it is when we meet the President that we can see if he can help us find solutions to them,� one NDC MP who was present at the meeting told the Daily Heritage yesterday on condition of anonymity. Impeccable sources very close to the Legislature told the Daily Heritage that majority of the MPs, especially, those who are not ministers or deputy ministers have over the period been complaining over their inability to see the President to discuss certain pertinent issues regarding their constituencies. According to the source, the MPs could spend five hours or even a whole day before they could meet the President. The unfortunate ones among them have their appointments canceled after waiting at the Flag Staff Half from morning to evening. �We always go to the Flag Staff House with well-scheduled appointments to meet the President on certain pertinent issues relating to our constituencies only to be asked to wait for hours or for days. If the issues are urgent, we at times end up abandoning the meeting, making our work very difficult. �Our schedules are often changed at times to allow some foreigners, often white people to enter and meet the President while we are sitting and waiting. The situation is very unbearable and disgusting,� an aggrieved MP narrated their ordeals to the Daily Heritage in an encounter yesterday. Checks at the Flag Staff House, the seat of government corroborated the information volunteered by the MP to the Daily Heritage that there is a strong barrier between them and nation�s Chief Executive. A source at the Flag Staff House encouraged the Daily Heritage to reveal the difficulties MP and leading party members go through to meet the President so that remedial measures can be found as quickly as possible. For over a week now, the President, John Dramani Mahama has come under sustained media onslaught from the former Majority Leader, Mr. Alban Bagbin over what the experienced legislature said is his inability to meet the President and offer him advice on how to tackle corruption in government. In the ensuing media melee, the Presidential Staffer, Mr. Stan Dogbe returned fire describing Mr. Bagbin as big liar and also questioned his own efforts at fighting corruption when he was the minister of Health. Scores of other government appointees also joined the fray with invectives against the Nadowli-Kaleo MP with the Deputy Information Minister, Mr. Felix Kwakye calling for the MP to resign from his post as one of the �wise men� in charge of government priority projects. The President himself broke a ceasefire imposed by the General Secretary of the party, Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketia, euphemistically calling on all those looking for his exit from the presidency to wait till 2016 when another election would be held.