John Mahama on the campaign trail
Weeks before the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections, flagbearers of the two leading political parties in Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, of the New Patriotic Party, and John Dramani Mahama, of the National Democratic Congress, committed themselves to a peace pact.
That was not the first time the two candidates had committed to ensuring peace in the country.
From 2012 through 2016 till date, the heads of the two parties have always agreed to abide by the dictates of the Electoral Commission or go to court, if a party flagbearer felt aggrieved.
That is why all civil society actors and leaders, including academia and heads of religious bodies, are endorsing that path, instead of the acts of mayhem ongoing in several parts of the country under the tacit approval and instigation of John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the NDC.
Call by House of Chiefs
Only a couple of days ago, the President of the National House of Chiefs, Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II, reminded the two leading figures of peace pact they committed themselves to respect. He particularly called on John Mahama to go to court to seek redress for his grievances from the December 7 general elections, instead of throwing hoodlums onto the streets to cause mayhem and provoke the police.
Like most decent observers of the last electoral processes, which culminated in the December 7, 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections, the revered chief hailed the smooth manner in which the elections were conducted, stating that Ghana has once again demonstrated to the whole world that we are a beacon of democracy.
In an official release to the media, the House said it had taken note of the concerns of some political actors regarding the outcome of the last elections, saying the way forward for such aggrieved persons is to seek redress by following due process.
The chiefs also called on the leaders of the various political parties to restrain their marauding youth, while the police and other members of the security agencies hold the fort in ensuring law and order. It also called on the NDC, particularly, to refrain from making inflammatory statements that have the tendency to cause mayhem in the country.
At this point, we believe Ghanaians are speaking one voice, which is peace, security, stability and the rule of law, in forging forward towards a solution which we may only find in our courts, in the final analysis.
No other options
Back to the peace pact, we can only remind John Mahama that reverting to the agreement does not mean he is a coward or that he had been conned by signing that document. It means, in our opinion, that while he may be right in alleging that he may have been shortchanged, he must only do that by the rules of the game, which is going to court.
We understand the anguish the former President may be going through, particularly when his parliamentary candidates have performed remarkably better. Unfortunately, the conversation here is the result of the presidential contest and not the parliamentary.
Even so, we saw the NDC he leads just return from court over the Techiman South case, winning by 16 votes after a recount. Interestingly, that is the same court the traditional rulers and civil society are asking Mr Mahama to go in seeking redress.
It is important that he does listen to the House of Chiefs and all voices of reason if he does not want to be seen as plotting mayhem or provoking the security agencies.
For us at the Daily Statesman, just like many well-meaning, decent-minded and peace-loving Ghanaians, we believe there are no other sustainable options for Mr Mahama.
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