NDC delegates who will be going to the polls on Saturday, December 17, 2022, may have a difficult time choosing between the two contenders of the National Chairmanship position (i.e incumbent General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketiah and incumbent chairman, Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo.)
This is because, according to Political Scientist, Dr. Kwame Asah-Asante, both candidates are ‘worthy materials’ for the post and have proven themselves over the years.
“They’ve all excelled throughout their years in the party as party faithful, and they’ve worked very hard to bring the party to where it is,” he said.
According to him, their immense contribution towards the growth and development of the party cannot be shoved under the carpet, and thus described them as stalwarts of the party.
He, however, expressed concern that the recent bickering between the two in the run up to the NDC’s National Delegates Conference may dent the image they have built for themselves through their works.
He explained that while it is normal for there to be disagreements within party executives, he was not expecting the said disagreement to spill out into the open instead of being addressed internally.
“I expected that whatever differences there are between them, they must do well to ameliorate the situation by talking to their supporters and making sure that the only way that they can win power is through the message that they churn out that will resonate with those who are going to elect them.
“And that they will have strategy that will be in tune with the legal processes that the party has put in place and of course they will be able to come out with manifestoes that will address the lingering challenges within this country in general and then the specific interest of the party, and of course, their followers and all that.
“Once they get these things right in place, their home will stay dry. So the bickering, the rancor, the attacks on each other to the best of my knowledge, it doesn’t bode well for them at all, and that I expect them to talk to their supporters and then go to the elections and then let us have genuine contest,” he said.
Meanwhile the Political Scientist has bemoaned the violence that characterized the first part of the National Delegates’ Conference in Cape Coast.
Dr. Asah-Asante stressed that it does not augur well for the image of the party as a democratic institution.
He called for the party’s leadership to address any challenges within the party to prevent a repeat of Saturday’s incident at the final National Delegates’ Conference.
“So I will urge the NDC leadership to sit down, plan properly and make sure that the big task ahead which is the Saturday one will be incident free. This also goes to the party faithful that you can’t claim to be supporting a party and at the same time taking certain decisions or actions that undermine the entire process that your party is putting in place.
“I think the party’s interest is bigger than any other interest, so if there are difficulties, there are challenges, I will urge people to use the internal structures within to be able to address their concerns and then forge ahead to make sure that their party wins power,” he said.
Source: Myjoyonline