A Senior Political Science Lecturer at the University of Ghana, Legon, Dr. Ransford Gyampo, has cautioned party apparatchiks of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) who want to put themselves up for the flagbearership race of the umbrella family to reconsider their actions.
In the view of the Political Scientist, once the Dr. Kwesi Botchwey Committee has not concluded its work and submits its findings for the ‘Akatamansonians’ to know the true cause of their defeat in the 2016 general elections, pushing one’s self interest at this critical moment will be suicidal for the general revival of the party.
“It is important for those putting themselves up for this to appreciate that for the sake of their own cohesion and unity, the togetherness of the party, they would have to be cautious. It is a political situation because people have the right to put themselves up there to show interest that they would want to be given the nod to serve as the flag bearer. But I believe they would have to learn to do the first thing first otherwise, they would shot themselves in the foot,” he noted.
He added “they should also be aware that the popularity or otherwise John Mahama is contingent on how well the Akufo-Addo administration governs the country. And so, if they (Akufo-Addo’s administration) do so well … we are told there were so many instances of alleged corruption and if these get unraveled, and they govern so well, then of course Mahama himself wouldn’t be popular. But if they are not able to do that, then the man [Mahama] would still stand tall among them and it is important they factor all these things before deciding whether they want to do just what they are doing.”
What should be of much interest to the NDC apparatchiks, he added, is to be responsible in opposition in order to put the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) on its toes.
Dr. Gyampo made these known while interacting with TV3 on Tuesday, May 2, 2017. The Accra-based TV Station had called him to comment on the campaign posters of the 2nd Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, which was widely circulating on social media announcing his readiness to contest the NDC flagbearership race when the party opens nominations.
The MP for Nadowli/Kaleo through his Aide, Joseph Konuba, has since denied being behind the ‘Bagbin 2020’ campaign posters.
However, Dr. Gyampo commenting further expressed doubt over the denial by the 2nd Deputy Speaker of Parliament.
According to him, the release of campaign posters by politicians unto the public domain has always been the norm to test the waters before making a final decision to either contest for the position he or she is vying for or not.
Therefore, the release of Hon. Bagbin’s purported campaign posters unto the public domain on Tuesday, May 2, 2017, will not be treated as an isolated case.
“As a Political Scientist, I am not oblivious to the fact that sometimes people resort to these acts. They are testing the waters of one’s acceptability and popularity within the party. And so, even though one can say on the facial level that it is coming from an Aide. I very much suspect that the man [Hon. Bagbin] himself may be very much aware of this and this is just a usual way of politicking in a view to determine whether one will be accepted when he or she avails himself out there,” he noted.
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