Your Excellency, I am taking this initiative of writing to you in the hope that you will see reason and a greater purpose, not to stand for the 2020 Presidential primaries of the National Democratic Congress.
You see, in 2012, I voted for you to be President. However, in 2016, I voted for candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for President.
So far, his administration has been shambolic and disappointing; I do not intend voting for him again in 2020. Please, for your information, I do not intend voting for you either, and I am not alone. I am part of a group you will call the swing voters.
We are anywhere between 5 8% of the voting bloc. As you would know, the NDC commands about 44% of the electorate, while the NPP on the other hand, commands about 47%.
It is, therefore, the swing-voting bloc, which decides in the elections. Interestingly, we the swing voters, tend not to come out and vote in large numbers, as I did in 2008, preferring to work with whoever comes to power.
However, when we do come out to vote in large numbers, often, driven by a strong desire for a change in direction, as we did in 2016, our contribution does make that needed difference.
My reason for writing to you, your Excellency, is quite straightforward – Back down, and make it easier for the NDC party delegates to elect a more suitable candidate.
This candidate should not have allegations of corruption around his or her neck, and the swing voters will back him or her for President in 2020.
Here are my reasons for you to back down, as you are not a suitable candidate:
1. Discipline. Your Excellency, please your tenure of office was not an impressive one. Since you took over in 2012, every economic indicator performed poorly.
To be fair, your administration’s policies could not have been the cause of them entirely, but mostly. For starters, let us consider punctuality. You are notoriously late to events and your ministers do not keep up with appointments.
On standing your ground, you were quick to back down on serious economic reforms, until the IMF had to force your hand to pursue them. Outside the office, as reckless as it seemed, you went riding on a motorcycle around town, and worse, without a helmet.
Please, are you aware it is unlawful to ride a motorcycle without a helmet? How will such behaviour from a sitting President encourage law enforcement? To worsen matters, your ‘babies with sharp teeth’ went unchecked while they publicly hauled insults on elders – a practice our culture deeply frowns upon.
2. Corruption. Your Excellency, please, proven or not, there is no smoke without fire. Your predecessor was never accused of corruption, therefore, why you? Numerous transactions have gone on with allegations of your hand in them – STX, Subah, Ameri, Brazilian aircrafts, Chinese helicopters, various questionable Zoomlion contracts, Ghana Gas, Power Purchasing Agreements (11 have since been cancelled under the NPP government), COCOBOD, MASLOC, BOST, hefty foreign trip allowances paid to you ($101,000+) and your wife ($82,000+) per trip etc.
The list goes on. Then comes transactions by your wife, not to even mention Ibrahim, your brother. Please, why is it that such allegations or similar were never levied against the late President J.E.A. Mills or his wife? Furthermore, can you level any such allegations of corruption directly against the current President? You see, they say there is no smoke without fire. A word to a wise, is enough.
3. You are not a listener. In the Holy Bible, the book of Proverbs Chapter 11 versus 14, says, “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers”. After the death of King Solomon of Israel, Rehoboam, his son, did not listen to his counsellors and caused Israel to become a divided State, and later, defeated. This also happened to the NDC under your leadership in the 2016 elections.
When you were confronted about your go it alone attitude, you famously played Daddy Lumba’s song, translated into English to mean – we will not listen to anyone. As if such a move was not disrespectful enough, you would go further on to say publicly that you are a ‘dead goat’, meaning you will not hear anything.
Sadly, this behaviour led to an unprecedented loss for the NDC in 2016. Your Excellency, one may ask, can an old dog be taught new tricks? How then can anyone, at least a rational person, believe that you have repented and now a born again for 2020? Any rational person will suspect that your only intention for running is to come for one more term and enrich yourself for life, having spent so much during the 2016 election.
4. Oh! And yes, you are Incompetent. Yes, truly, and here is why. Competence, according to a simple google search, means having the necessary ability, knowledge, or skill to do something successfully. To this regard, would you say you have been competent in the management of the Ghanaian economy?
If so, why did you have to run to the IMF? Painfully, because of this IMF programme, new government sector workers, such as nurses, critical for healthcare delivery in places like the north, are finding it difficult to gain posting.
I can go on, and on. However, please if you should sit and do a thorough assessment, you will come to the same conclusion to back down, being a selfless person as you say that you are.
Your Excellency, the National Democratic Congress, if not for the corruption tag hanging over it, a tag which you have been the cause, would be a party that should be in power. The NDC, as a social democratic party, has its ideals of catering to the welfare of the masses. Considering that 6.8 million Ghanaians are very poor in a recent study, a social democratic party in power would have various programmes targeted at them towards the socio-economic development of this country.
On the contrary, the NPP, a capitalistic party, have had difficulty winning elections based on their ideologies. They have had this difficulty since independence. To get by this challenge, the NPP steal social democratic ideas to win elections and once elected, they push their agenda.
Today, Ghanaians are hugely disappointed, and like me, feel cheated. To win the 2016 elections, the NPP made so many promises and though some of us felt it would be impossible to achieve all of them, such as the one district, one factory concept, we felt that they would at least do a better job.
It is obvious now that they were ill prepared for even their flagship Free SHS programme. Instead, their cronies have ended up with big juicy contracts, such as a whopping 100 million Ghana cedi contract to the wife of a politician. Then the $89 million Ministry of Communications contract and more.
Your Excellency, we know that unlike the NDC, it is difficult to place the corruption tag on the NPP. We are aware that they are craftsmen, who follow due process for the favoured few, unlike the NDC, which favours the masses.
This is why should the NDC deal seriously with the issue of corruption, the party will always remain in power. At least, that is my opinion.
In summary, you running for President will only make it difficult for the NDC to come to power, at least not in 2020. Coincidentally, you recently admitted to supporters in Awutu Senya that God orchestrated your defeat in 2016. One can compare such a divine revelation to that of St. Peter, when Jesus asked his disciples whom they thought he was, to which Peter answered, Thou art the son of God.
After hearing this revelation from you, it is only prudent that you heed the voice of God and lend your support to another, so the NDC can come back to power in 2020. If you love the NDC, and for that matter, Ghana, please back down.
Think of the over 300,000 NDC delegates, who will be crisscrossing this country, the sleepless nights and toil, only to lose in the end because of candidate John Dramani Mahama. Rather, do not run and rally the northern votes for whoever emerges as the flagbearer.
Once a new leader emerges, and the issue of corruption addressed, I can comfortably assure you that the NDC will come to power in 2020, and stay in power.
Your Excellency, you can bet on it!