Peace And Security, Vital For Ghana�s Election 2012

Ghanaians and African political watchers are increasingly getting jittery about the unwarranted bickering, accusations and counter-accusations that have bedevilled intra-party activities in Ghana in recent months. It is not for nothing that Ghana currently ranks as the beacon of democratic practice and the bastion of peace on the African continent. Attaining democratic height is essential, but the consolidation and stabilization of the process is more herculean. It is in this vein that this writer would take this opportunity to diagnose the remote causes of the current tension within the major political parties, which may result in a �political catastrophe� at the national level as we ready ourselves towards election 2012. THE MILLS-KONADU IMPASSE This writer is not the least surprised about the dog-fight which has engulfed the ruling National Democratic Congress. The sharp division within the ruling party is real. This writer foresaw this as far back as 1998 when the then ruling NDC organized an emergency conference at Sekondi to make amendments to some clauses in the party�s constitution. A specific clause was inserted to elevate the then President Jerry Rawlings to be the de-facto founder of the party. My goodness! With my background as a student of politics, I knew the NDC as a party had signed their death warrant. In the current civilized political world, where the era of �personality cult� has long outlived its usefulness, it was imperative that an entrenchment of an individual on a party can never stand the test of time. Lo and behold, even out of power, Jerry Rawlings, by a party constitutional fiat, still recognizes himself as �the owner� of a party that was built with the sweat and toil of thousands other Ghanaians. The current rage of fire in the NDC therefore is a problem created by all leading members of the NDC, who today find themselves comfortable in the bosom of President Atta-Mills. The second reason which equally emerged from the �historical error� of the NDC was the declaration at Swedru in 1999. This Presidential fiat by Jerry Rawlings to announce the presidential candidacy of then Vice-President Atta-Mills to lead the party for the 2000 elections was also done in bad faith. Any party worth its salt that claims to possess democratic credentials goes to the polls to either elect a candidate or endorse a candidate if he/she remains the sole contestant for the flagbearership. It is very clear from the Konadu camp that they recognize Nana Konadu Agyemang-Rawlings as a candidate with a better understanding of the chemistry of the NDC. She was instrumental in the formation of the NDC. She knows the umbilical cord of the party and burnt more energy and resources to help build the NDC in 1992. Agents of Konadu believe that history favours their preferred candidate, but nature, however, finds Rawlings blameable for imposing an �alien� on the party in 1999, hence the current impasse which the Council of Elders in the party should not take for granted. THE NANA ADDO �ALAN �IMAGINARY FEUD� The New Patriotic Party, without doubt, has grown to become one of the most credible political parties with unblemished democratic credentials in the country, if not in Africa. Political kingpins within the party are clamouring for a Nana Addo-Alan presidential duo for election 2012.Without mincing words, agents of Nana Addo caused some degree of harm to their campaign fortunes in 2008 when most, if not all of Alan Kyerematen supporters, were sidelined during the campaign for the first round of election 2008.They were only convinced to join the �train� in the second round presidential round-off. This writer wonders whether this anomaly within the NPP has changed. Nana Addo sincerely needs Alan Kyerematen and his followers, mainly the NPP Youth, women and floating voters nationwide. Comparatively, the division within the New Patriotic Party is only a perception. The fact that Ex-President J .A Kufuor and former Vice-President Aliu Mahama have been co-opted to join the campaign advisory team speaks volume of a party that means business to win election 2012 and recapture power. THE CPP-PNC RAGING CRISIS From all indications, the leadership of both the Convention People�s Party and the People�s National Convention are self-cantered. Both parties need to vote out all their national executives at their next congresses and bring the two parties together to create a common platform to wrestle power. How can leaders of these parties continue to fight over name and symbol for the proposed merger party? This is as irrelevant as the wrangling itself. Kwame Nkrumah, founder of the CPP, was the cause of the current division within the party since he failed to draw up a succession plan for the CPP, but rather created a myth around his personality which is the result the CPP is reaping today. Ghanaians love their party political system which has come to stay, but we should not underrate the seemingly volatile and unacceptable internal crisis that exists in all the major parties. The tension and divisions are real and all of us as Ghanaians, as well as our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora, have a role to play to ensure a violent free election next year. This writer would like to appeal to the Ghana Peace Council, the National Media Commission, the National Commission on Civic Education, the Electoral Commission, and indeed all other stakeholders, to embark on a vigorous sensitization exercise towards a violent free election 2012. The donor community cannot be left out of this exercise since a stroke of electoral violence in Ghana could have dire consequences on the rest of the African Continent. THREE DAYS WASHINGTON PEACE SUMMIT This critical situation has prompted the UAB World Congress, an independent non-political conflict mediation group based in Washington DC, United States, and their 300 affiliate organizations who are jointly sponsoring a special three days Peace Summit. The congress will bring together all the key players of Ghanaian political parties and other dignitaries from the media, opinion leaders and many others from US, Europe, Canada and Africa, to try and bring about a resolution to this hard pressing crisis, in the month of July 2011. The congress is putting in special efforts to bring a peaceful solution to this inter political conflict which can create danger in Ghana and the entire continent of Africa. The congress is expecting some of Africa�s and US former presidents, and speakers from the US State Department. Interested participants can contact their Washington DC. Office at 1300 Pennsylvania av. the Ronald Reagan building suit 700 in the USA or visit their website at www.uabworldcongress.org for any further information.