Former President Jerry John Rawlings has been challenged to name opportunists responsible for the National Democratic Congress’ humiliating defeat at the 2016 polls.
A former vice-chairman of the opposition NDC Alhaji Sani Mohammed said Rawlings’ “monkey dey work and baboon dey chop” comment is too vague.
Former President Rawlings addressing party supporters June 11 at Ashaiman in the Greater Accra region to mark the party’s Silver Jubilee said that his party is full of “monkey dey work and baboon dey chop”.
The founder who is his party’s biggest critic stressed, the values of probity and accountability have been abandoned to allow in greedy opportunists.
Few in the party take on the founder of late following the NDC’s return to opposition. While his public stature appears to be on the rise, powerful elements in the party have grown quiet on the founder.
But take the path of resistance, Alhaji Sani Mohammed, said on Asempa FM’s “Eko Si S3n” Tuesday, President Rawlings is too fond of making sweeping allegations and blanket attacks on the party he founded in 1992.
“We cannot crucify our own people publicly and disgrace them all the time. He was addressing grown-ups and responsible people like himself and so he should know how to talk to us and not cross certain lines,” he slammed.
He reminded Rawlings, many in the NDC have sacrificed for the party without reward or advantage which Rawlings may have enjoyed while President for 8 years.
“They didn’t get anything out of it and so if you stand somewhere to say “monkey dey work, Baboon dey chop”, then I will ask you who is the monkey and who is the baboon?”
“He should explain further because his children schooled abroad and he failed to show us the person who sponsored their education while some of us, our children couldn’t complete school at “Site O” level; and then who is the Monkey and the Baboon? Who is working and who is chopping?”.
Although the former NDC Vice-Chairman acknowledged some party excutives and government officials grew arrogant and abused their offices while in power, he stressed that not everyone in the party is corrupt as Rawlings’ explosive commentary appears to suggest.
Alhaji Sani Mohammed explained Rawlings ought to bear part of the blame for the party’s defeat because Ghanaians bought into his incessant rant that NDC is corrupt.
“We are not even complaining why Nana Addo thanked you and your wife after winning the election. What did you do for him before he thanked you? This means you helped him politically; we don’t do that,” he charged.
He wants the former President to exercise restraint in his explosive ‘boom’ speeches.
“Do you know too much complains amount to hatred? So the complains are enough and let’s move forward, but if he continues to talk, I form a different opinion about him. He should leave NDC alone for us; the party doesn’t belong to him,” he jabbed.