Last Wednesday, the Electoral Commissioner declared the winner for the crucial 2020 presidential election, with President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo picking gold by a staggering 500,000 plus, while former President John Dramani Mahama went down the second time, grinning and griping.
His parliamentary candidates, however, managed to save the NDC from utter shame, with a performance that was obviously facilitated by the governing NPP’s poor handling of the selection of its parliamentary candidates and other internal problems.
Overrated NDC
However high the NDC overrates itself, the fact remains that it lost. What we must also admit is that the NPP had never underrated the NDC, particularly because of its expertise in effectively delivering propaganda during elections, though that ‘negative competence’ hardly translates into good governance and sustained national development.
No wonder, one of its own described the NDC as a machine for winning elections instead of a political organisation with development and good governance as a programme and agenda.
With the back-to-back defeat, it remains to be seen if Mr Mahama has enough conviction to claim he is a better candidate and presidential material, after querying in 2016 if the then flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party had been President before.
Tact
But that’s all history, as the two parties begin to take stock of their activities and strive to put Ghana first, instead of the selfish interest and political vigilantism that drove ignorant youth to the premises of the EC to act stupid.
Thank God, the security agencies, instead of applying John Mahama’s sledge hammer, used diplomacy and tact in deflating their poisoned egos and warped minds.
It is interesting how they left in trickles after realising that they had been conned by their leadership. But we can understand them, if more decent guys like Rojo were caught in the con-game.
Nana Akufo-Addo’s record
Despite the whirlwind that rid the NPP of several Members of Parliament, it remains an incontrovertible fact that the governing party, under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has enhanced the image of Ghana at global level by the several development initiatives put in place in growing Ghana’ economy as a leader at global level.
That is also beside the fact that he had attracted volumes of international partnerships in global business and development – all geared at generating jobs, enhancing food security and improving lives and livelihoods.
Mahama’s record
That is a far cry away from what we had generally been used to, as was expressed in Mahama’s contribution to the national economy, infrastructural development and safety net initiatives that relieve vulnerable populations in both urban and rural communities.
The massing of an NDC crowd at the premises of the EC last Wednesday is ample testimony of how lowly Mr Mahama and his party intend to keep the Ghanaian youth so they can serve perpetually as barking dogs, instead of national human resource base for development.
Kudos
At this point, we also point out that Nana Akufo-Addo’s good governance capabilities were what drove the initiative behind the elections management stakeholders to soldier on, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, in rolling out this wonderful election experience.
That is why it is important to commend the EC and Elections Task Force for delivering on their singular mandate to protect the processes and the nation.
May God therefore bless our security agencies who held the fort, the electoral officers and EC volunteers as well as ordinary citizens who appreciate development and gave the mandate where it should go to enable Nana Akufo-Addo to do four more years in improving lives and livelihoods.
