Rawlings joins National Democratic Party (NDP)
Rawlings and his wife Nana Konadu
According to the Interim General Secretary of the newly-formed political party, Dr Joseph Mamboah-Rockson, Mr Rawlings and his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings were part and parcel of the NDP.
“Yes they are behind the NDP and they will strongly campaign for us after we have launched our party.”
Dr Mamboah-Rockson made this revelation last Friday after some founding members of the party submitted their application forms to the Electoral Commission for registration as a political party.
The delegation, led by Dr Mamboa-Rockson, included close associates of the Rawlingses such as Robert Quaye Tetteh and Emmanuel Saint Osei, a leading member of the Friends of Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings (FONKAR) and an aide to the former president.
The former first couple is yet to confirm or deny its involvement in the party themselves- a situation that has given room for media speculations.
Communications Director at the Presidency, Koku Anyidoho even interpreted a recent visit to the Castle by Mr Rawlings to meet President Mills as a sign of unity and an indication of the NDC founder’s preparedness to campaign for the NDC ahead of the December 7 elections.
But the NDP scribe told DAILY GUIDE, “He (Koku) was just deceiving the grassroots supporters because that is not what they went there to discuss.”
What was still unknown was whether the Rawlingses would resign from the NDC or wait for the leadership of the ruling party to revoke their membership.
Though some, especially leading members of the ruling NDC, had suggested that NDP was formed by a group of aggrieved and disgruntled members to undermine the ruling party, since most of its founding members were people who had broken away from the NDC, Dr Mamboah-Rockson debunked that claim, asking rhetorically, “What about the NPP? Are we undermining NPP? Are we undermining PPP which was just formed?”
He emphasized: “All those are fallacies people are just talking”, insisting, “We are a political party; we are here to stay and we are here to win the 2012 election.”
On the issue of the colours being used by the NDP which had a semblance of the red, white, green and black of the ruling NDC, the NDP scribe noted: “We are maintaining those colours and colours like I said is not a preserve. Colours are placed in any order and we can place them in any order to differentiate ourselves from any (other) political party.”
He indicated that “the EC deals with symbols…so it is symbols that the EC registers.
“Even at that time, I heard that we were using the umbrella. These were statements just made to neutralize our strength but in God I think everything is possible.”
The NDP is waiting for the EC to issue it with a provisional certificate to launch and roll out a massive campaign strategy towards the December 2012 elections.
A deputy Information Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, had said that the NDP was a big joke and that it was a party dead from birth.
“I do not think the NDP has the capacity to organize and win elections in 2012 – it is still-born really,” he said in reaction to the formation of the party.
Critics of the NDC had suggested that the caliber of NDC stalwarts behind the NDP meant it could deal a bigger blow to the NDC than the National Reform Party (NRP) did in the 2000 elections.
However, Mr Ablakwa said the NRP dealt a serious blow to the NDC in 2000 because its members then were cadres who could organize at the grassroots level, but the people linked to the NDP so far were top brass NDC members who did not have the capacity and personnel to organize.
Ablakwa noted that even if the Rawlingses did not campaign for the NDC this year, that was not a guarantee the NDC would lose, saying that in 2000 and year 2004, the Rawlingses were on the NDC campaign train, and yet the party lost on both occasions.
Media speculations had linked the Rawlingses with the new party since its formation became public, but the NDC had discounted it, saying that Mr Rawlings was still in the fold of the ruling party.
“The NDC regards the reported association of our former President to the new party as mere speculation and will not make any statement on the matter until the former President himself comes out,” a statement signed by Richard Quashigah, Propaganda Secretary, had said.
Source Daily Guide Ghana
Category: Politics
