The polling of December 7, 2024, is over. Whichever results there would be grand post mortem. There are lots of recriminations within the loser-party [NPP]. There is talk of the Party broken up—likely ethnically divisive. But generally, the ballot showed lessons which are retrospective historically, Few things are not true for me to draw for correction, nuanced or not. The NDC achieved a monumental victory; but it is very wrong to describe it as “unprecedented”. We shall soonest make comparison irrelevant. Here are the stats without belittling the enormity: the CPP always increased their turns and dominated between 1951 and 1957. It took years for DOMO [now NPP] to wait for Prof. Busia’s Progress Party [PP] to win then characterised as “landslide”. The former President John Kufuor swept the NPP to rule eight straight years. Nana Akufo-Addo presided for another eight years 2016–2020.
The second information is that the country had voted out arrogance and the entitlement-mentality—a supposed right to do anything I want—with brazen impunity and the tendency to make unmet pre-elections promises and poor performance. As far as political labelling has the NPP is a Right Wing Party, the history is they get back together ultimately. In subsequent elections, they had fielded numbers. It seems to have come back to hunt latterly. This led to both Right and Left Parties apparently paying political debts in, relative to state institutional – appointments, as if paying political debts in perpetuity, an absolute nullity. Inclusive pointedly is a surreptitiously grown fashion in our politics so far, it has insidiously bred the appropriate neo-cynicism called “democratic—dictatorship”. That is said to be worse than the judicial. Our historical archive testifies– the very politically powerful Ghana Bar Association had defied in the Solicitors License Fee, May 1968/9 but again demonstrably won a pyrrhic victory; and there were protests over aspects of a constitutional- props which appeared might contain elements which might or were likely.
In the immediate aftermath of the fall, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the former Vice President but contested the Presidency for the NPP, conceded defeat early Sunday, the morning after the ballot. It took another day, Monday’s following evening for the EC’s Jean Mensa to declare to a restive nation wracked by unnecessary nervousness and which results the country knew. It was an expectation for a mere formality. There is no precedence and the stalemate supplied more suspicions about rigging-afoot and disorders in parts of the country. Dr Bawumia had been a gentleman and a good patriot, indelibly exemplary.
There was something curious about it. Whether he did, or, not, advance-inform the Presidency and the party hierarchy. It was learned from his speech that he had moved to help restore a modicum of stoppage to the rumbling violence. But the consequence of that surprise concession has a massive impact on the NPP—its leadership and complicates including breakup gossip. The forecast nearest time that would for the original party, speculates 12 -15 years to recover to win power again. The reign of the PP was 24 months, term truncated by a military coup. Kufuor and Akufo-Addo had 16 straight years. The CPP hogged power 1951-1966. However, the NDC could confront a variation on the same conduct as an essentially Left-Wing which is prone to internecine quarrels when they elected with huge majority. And that fritters opportunities. It happened to them into second break up the Reform Party before Social Democratic and cliques during former President John II (Kufuor) throughout, except the final year of his second term, too late. The salient lesson and message is “no electorate will kick out” sustained good—“even half for do”.
The NDC has a less succession problem for now, if Prof. Naana Opoku-Agyemang, works well her role for country and Party, the NDC in power; and if Dr Bawumia does not quit and or, re-endorsed by the new NPP. But the obstacles include two riders: narrow parochialism—the Ashanti may claim to wrest their –“our party” back, as one often heard before the last eight years—the Nana Akufo-Addo at the helm. I should explain the long-standing “Ashanti-claim” to own the NPP because they bore the costs mostly in the secession fiasco yet remain the largest contributors to finance the party—is it the ‘entitlement –mentality’?
Our electoral rules ban ethnic, sect or religious and between district community through regional political parties. The meaning is lucid. That notwithstanding, the historical narrative starts with after the 1956 general parliamentary elections where an amalgam of regional Party like the Northern Peoples Party, the Ashanti secessionist movement National Liberation Movement, Muslim Association Party , Ga Shifimokpe, Busia’s National Youth Congress, S.G.Antor’s Ablode, Danquah-Ollenu-Obetsebi Lamptey’s pretence of the rump of the Paa Grant’s UGCC and Independents, beaten by the CPP in successive elections and stuck the only condition on which they won’t abandon in the talks with the British Government as a condition the NLM to lay down arms.
At that time Ashanti included Brong Ahafo as a region. But Nkrumah hived it into another Region. Its political dynamics will take a whole historical narration. Anyway, the losers in 1956 decided to join together in one party called United Party (UP). Following the series of military take-overs, the ban on politics was lifted and Prof. Busia announced his Progress Party which won the subsequent elections to lead as Prime Minister. The close of the NLC, the first military Junta brought the PP, as previously stated and another of Rawlings forced another change of name to NPP. Throughout the CPP was present in Ashanti. The Ashanti were largest in the PP, bearing from the debris of defeated- secessionist-NLM. But by then, between the short years after independence, Nkrumah had separated the Brong-Ahafo from Ashanti Region.
Loyalties shifted to the CPP in the new region to the CPP which in later years benefited the NDC from early 90s. There will be recriminations and the cracks will increase as efforts would be made to bring back the fragments to reassemble. But that could be sniffed out, if the breakup becomes a reality. But the Right of politics in this country has a history of returning home. They did after the PFP/ UNC. Yet, that had been fraught with leadership choices which always handicapped the party over leaders and numbers. The split into PFP and UNC was due to the Ashanti looking for their own tribesman, having discovered Busia was Brong and the rivalry between Victor Owusu and Paa Willie in the PP government. The breakup also drove people away and that disabled the reformed or the re-assembled run short of being able to field fully to fight elections. The tendency was to go for numbers initially.
That does not augur well, having drawn in fellows “who do not understand the DOMO principles and its raison d’etre”, I heard that repeatedly by speakers who tried to rationalise the said unprecedented butchering of the NPP in the recent polls. The apparent desperation must have opened admission-spaces because there was urgent need for numbers. In reality and overall, the NPP is a broken party today. The history shall record and recall two histories: [i] that it was incredible defeat and there is doubt the centre cannot hold any much longer but also not like “yeregye hen man”– [we are re-taking our country, insinuating then against Rawlings was alien, reference to his Scottish paternity, forgetting that they had two Scottish sons in their lineage]. [ii] In the 1956 crucial elections, the CPP won 17 seats out of 26 in Ashanti. I shall leave at that, not intended to play down the monumental achievement of the NDC against a background of disparate histories.
These would be too early days to expect a break up; but I recognise the drums against outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo, Pa Willie’s nephew. That accounts for next major reparation work to do on the heels of the “Ballot-2024”. The third is which policies in education, health, agriculture and jobs. Those will have to wait for three events and decisions: the state of the nation, inaugural address and appointments—cabinet and key diplomatic representations to gauge tilts. While these wait, the earnest issue on the public eager expectations-mind is how soon “Culpables” for the legacy of mess and break-down of discipline and sweeping de-politicisation of state establishments to percolate society which shall or should spontaneously support the banishment of corruption and fear—distrust inclusive of the Church. What the results in parliament portend, on one hand, the extent of public total rejection of the erstwhile government; and on another, that the Mahama-government, shall advisedly thread more carefully than a most furious nation would want. It comes back to ensuring they carry the people along, balancing all the immediate imperatives.
I ought to close on fours: about the “JOHNs” and the numbers affixes. But the prelude is a reference biblically. This country had been graced by FOUR JOHNS— Rawlings, Kufuor, Atta-Mills and Mahama, the ‘come-back-kid’. The clergy can translate that endowment. John IV in his “thanks” echoed his Vice’s “opening” the door, with kept ajar and the work “starts now”.
To complete, I want to conclude the foreign owned press here snippets. I think the Maj. Gen. Sir Edward Spears AGC Ashanti Times continued publishing for some couple of years more edited by Max Addo. Nigeria’s great statesman Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe owned and published the ‘’Spectator Daily’’ which made him famous before he returned home to agitate independence.
By Prof Nana Essilfie-Conduah.