Once upon a time, there existed a constituency in Ghana called Tain, a place you would not find in the tourists guide books to Ghana. Many Ghanaians did not even know how to pronounce the name of the community until prominence was trusted upon the constituency by the disputes that accompanied the 2008 presidential elections. Not even the most inquisitive Ghanaian geography students knew there was a place called Tain.
The story of Tain is that of a neglected community where opportunity is a scare commodity, perhaps not any more. Tain has played a major role in averting what would have been a stalemate and we can only reward it with more than just its fair share of the national cake. Arguably we still would have been waiting for the anomalies in the Ashanti Region figures and alleged irregularities in the Volta Region to be sorted out.
But thanks to Tain, we are moving on and I do hope the state can reward the people of Tain by setting up an education fund that would reward brilliant but needy students from the constituency to pursue higher education.
Did you hear that the former president Jerry Rawlings even assumed the role of a polling agent at one of the polling stations in Tain? Love him or hate him, the man always has something exciting to pull off. I guess you would call it civic responsibility. Go Jerry Go, for blessed are ye when man shall revile you, persecute you and say all manner of evil against you.
Members of the defeated ruling party have on many occasions branded themselves as the party with the best collection of minds than any other political party in Ghana. Yet the conduct of most of the party’s leadership could best be described in milder terms as mediocre. They take a lot of pride in telling us which prestigious schools they attended abroad and how wealthy they are, yet have done little to show it.
The NPP on Wednesday, January 1, went to a High court of Ghana to seek an injunction restraining the Electoral Commission of our country from declaring results of the presidential elections. What a pity! Not that they do not have a constitutional right to seek redress, but the sloppiness surrounding the whole drama about going to court is unbelievable. For a party that claims to “have the men” behaving in such manner is simply laughable.
Here are the facts. The 1st of January is a public holiday guaranteed by law in Ghana. Yet they went to court. They also went to a lower court which does not have the authority to decide on the issue/s they had brought before the court and according to Dr. Raymond Atuguba, an administrative lawyer and lecturer at the University of Ghana Law School, “The Supreme Court is the only body with the authority to interpret presidential electoral disputes” as stipulated in Ghana’s constitution.
Didn’t the NPP know that before they shamelessly paraded themselves before a high court Judge? How the judge granted them a hearing is something we would hear once the cans of worms in the NPP begin creeping out. You need one smart journalist or investigator and the media would have a field day.
They also used ex-parte, a legal strategy that could not have been employed in the reliefs they were seeking because the other party ought to have been brought in because of the nature of the dispute. And when they were virtually thrown out and given legal lessons, they sought another injunction to restrain the electoral commission from holding elections in the outstanding constituency of Tain, where according to the E C; the outcome of the votes from that constituency could determine who the next leader of Ghana is since the race was very tight. They have since retreated from pursuing any legal action at least for now; we are told and hitherto boycotted the Tain runoff.
Where are all the so called best brains in their party? Don’t get me wrong, it is not every member of the NPP’s leadership who is benighted. They indeed have a handful of very intelligent and level headed men and women, but most of them are really benighted. Their sad rise from grace to grass is public record.
Did the NPP not know that it was stinking to go to a lower court on a wrong day seeking to stop the announcement of a presidential election? I really feel sorry for the decent members of the NPP whose political contribution to our country’s growth is indispensable.
It’s a shame they have allowed their rather young party to be hijacked by a bunch of no good, belligerent and rather inept clique, the end result is another 16 or 20 years in opposition perhaps.
Indeed supporters of the party in Kumasi have confirmed views held by some of us since the NPP assumed office eight years ago. Their own supporters, this time not me, described the party’s hierarchy as incompetent, and as if that were not enough, the supporters hit the streets to express disgust at the serial incompetence of their leaders.
Nana Akufo-Addo and his entire group may have failed to secure the mandate of Ghanaians and creating some tension. But they have certainly succeeded in one thing – pissing on the celebrations that would have erupted in a grand style. There is weariness for everyone.
Anyone who took a keen interest in the elections must be very weary of the shenanigans that came with the entire exercise. The tension of the last few weeks in Ghana is reminiscent of the turbulence of the 60s and 70s when uprising and coups were common place. The ruling party almost caused an uprising with their cooked up figures from the Ashanti Region that nearly robed the people of their preferred choice, hence the closeness of the race.
Uncertainty griped the nation as the two contending parties slugged it out. Business nearly grounded to a halt as fear seized the business community and citizens of the country.
One thing became clear as the nation grew weary of the whole electoral process. People wanted to have it done and over with so that they could move on with their lives.
One may not be able to celebrate the NDC victory as we would wish, or dance like a hippie, nonetheless, we can afford a grin, invite friends and political foes alike to come join in the drinking of palm wine, cola nut partying or Champaign popping. After all, we are one Ghana.
For some of us, the last couple of nights since voting ended have left its mark – anxiety, empty coffee tins, puffy eyes, baskets of fruits and grogginess from lack of sleep. It is time to move on. Ghana has done it again.
The Black Star has risen to the occasion, but there’s a lot of work to do. Ghana has Bridges to build, promises to fulfil, fences to mend, jobs to create, reforms to enact and prisons to expand for those who may have abused their authority by stealing from state coffers. Bitter as the contest may have been, I hope all sides rally round the flag and contribute our quota of expertise. We in the NDC should remember that members of the NPP or any other party in minority are our compatriots; it is time to work with the good ones amongst them.
I know president elect Prof. Mills will reach out to everyone, as citizens we can all - victors or vanquished – pledge our allegiance to the new president and help move the country to greater heights.
Next time you want to go on your annual leave of office, don’t forget to check out Tain, the city of the future.
Credit: Ras Mubarak [mmubarak79@yahoo.com]
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