Jerry John Rawlings flanked by Kofi Adams (left) and Nana Kunadu Agyeman-Rawlings addressing the rally at Aflao yesterday
National Democratic Congress (NDC) founder, former President Jerry John Rawlings has expressed doubts about the ability of the ruling party to retain power come December 2012.
According to Mr Rawlings, the party is guilty of the same accusations made against the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) and therefore had lost the moral high ground needed to win the December elections.
He added that despite the many warning signs, those at the helm of affairs had succeeded in leading the party and government into a ditch. And unfortunately for the government, there was no attempt to get the party out of that ditch.
“It is unfortunate that we cannot recognize our limitations, every opportunity to decide what to do, but poor judgment is landing the NDC into a ditch,” he noted.
He said, in response to a friend’s observation that the party was getting into a ditch, he emphasized that “we are already in a ditch. I told the person we are already in a ditch.” Mr. Rawlings noted that “I foresaw a long time ago it was going to happen.”
“We didn’t land in it today and we are not going to land in it, but already in it,” he stressed.
JJ Rawlings being mobbed by supporters
Mr. Rawlings, who was in the company of his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, Kofi Adams, his Special Aide and Michael Teye Nyaunu, MP for Lower Manya Krobo, made the observation in Aflao during a June 4 rally.
The chiefs and elders of Aflao had warned the former President not to use the town as breeding ground for resentment against Mills government.
However, it turned out that it was only the wish of one chief, according to GNA reports.
Former President Rawlings, who electrified the grounds through his speech, noted that there was no way the NDC could win the December elections without upholding the ideals of June 4, which were probity, accountability and transparency.
He quizzed why the ruling party was afraid of the June 4parade and therefore sabotaging it, noting that it was because they were guilty of the things the June 4 Uprising fought against.
As it stood now, they had lost the moral high ground to go into the December elections, he pointed out.
“How do you expect to win an election if you destroy 31st December Movement and June 4th?” he quizzed.
By so doing, he added, they were destroying the NDC and making the suffering of the people who started the fight futile. “Did you just use us?” he wondered.
He cited the Woyome judgment debt and the loss of many cases involving the government in court as another reason why the NDC could not win the elections.
He also expressed shock at the fact that President Mills could endorse Nana Akufo-Addo, noting that “I will wish for my party to win but how can you win? How can you win against the NPP and Nana Akufo-Addo when we have lost the values of June 4th and the revolution? Have we become guilty of the same accusations made against the NPP?
“Some have advocated for close door handling (of the issue) but June 4 was handled in the open,” he said.
Nana Konadu denied allegations that she had been given $5million to revamp the Nsawam cannery and refused allegations that she used her influence to secure the factory.
I did not consult other chiefs-Togbe Anugbo
The Senior Divisional Chief of Aflao who signed the statement that demanded the shifting of the June 4 Uprising Anniversary rally from Aflao has conceded that he did not consult any other chief in the area before taking the action.
Togbe Nyuiemedzi Anugbo, speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said in his view the decision to stop the rally from being held at Aflao was pressing; therefore, there was no room for consultation.
The interview was prompted by the criticism and condemnation of Togbe Anugbo by other chiefs who accused him (Togbe Anugbo) of tarnishing the image of the traditional area.
Togbe Pasaku IV, for example, described the action as irrelevant and ill-conceived.
He said former President Rawlings had every right to hold the event at Aflao and no one chief could debar him.
Togbe Pasaku accused some leading members of the party of hatching the scheme to sow a seed of rancor in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Aflao area and beyond.
From Fred Duodu, Aflao
