THE LOOMING DANGER

.... Without a Dramatic Change , this years elections will definitely be violent The whole country has decided to engage ourselves in self-delusion ,extolling our infinite virtues and non-violent nature. But we are definitely wrong as we have demonstrated our vile side time and again.Most of our leaders have simply closed their eyes to the glaring truth about what is about to hit us and instead engaged themselves in further self disillusionment.The signs are all clear that there is a massive potential for this terms election to be violent and riddled with problems. this elections will surely test the deepness and richness of our young democracy. The signs are so clear as events in the electioneering campaign unfolds. There have been violence all over the country associated with the elections. There is so much at stake in this elections and the direction of governance over the last few years makes most politicians think its a zero-sum game:winners take everything and losers take nothing.

WE WILL REVERSE SALE OF GT

CPP Declares As the current controversy surrounding the sale of Ghana Telecom becomes more confusing and complicated by the day, the CPP has told Vodafone that it risks losing its investment if they go ahead to sign this stinking deal. Citing precedents from Nigeria and pointing out the obvious anomalies in the contract, the CPP made it clear that if it won power it will not condone with the disposal of such a vital national asset in such a manner.

THE BEST STRATEGIC DECISION FOR THE CPP

There is a split among members of the CPP over what is the best strategy for the party in terms of its electoral moving towards the 2008 General Election.

After 50 years of Independence, it would be quite nice to have the party of the Great father of the Nation, ease back into power and lead us towards desired aspirations. But from all indications it seems it wile take a lot of doing before such a wishful thinking could become reality.

This division in strategy has two man sides, the parliamentary Action Group (PAG) which has changed somehow but the tendencies and practices has not gone yet and the National Executives. There is also another side to it with the Patriot Group also joining the fray with a less clear and aloof views on which way to go.

The PAG is adamant that the only way forward for the CPP is to build up a presence in parliament by doing the ‘electoral deals’ with other parties, particularly the NPP (which is very strange given the history and ideological gap between the two traditions). They contend that the only way to organize a winnable party is to make it very visible in parliament and that from there the CPP can effectively challenge for presidential power.

This group was led by the CPP members of parliament including the current presidential candidate Paa Kwesi Ndoum, and some publicly acclaimed members of the party. They took their ideas too far to the extent of publicly campaigning for Kuffour and activity campaigning against George Agguddey, the CPP Flag bearer in the 2004 elections. It was such an ugly experience for the CPP and I’m sure any one of them with any introspection will look back on it with much shame.

The other side led by the National executive and central committee is absolutely against any such collaboration, and certainly not the NPP which historically is diametrical opposed to the beliefs and philosophy of the CPP. They believe that as a presidential system, does not give room for building the support from parliament and making deals with the devil is certainly not a clear roadman towards presidential power. They consider such an action as patently against the best interest of the great party.

The National Executives and the Central Committee could be said to be the purists who believe it is not worth compromising on party’s core values and philosophies for any parliamentary offers .they believe that presenting a presidential candidate provides the party with a good chance of galvanizing solid grassroots support for all other structures of the party and it provides the only way to present creditable alternative in our political system which is an Executive presidential system.

They considered the actions of the PAG as disingenuous and subsequent instituted disciplinary action against them. This has resulted in a vicious in-fighting among the members of PAG and many Central Committee members This has arrested the needed focus needed to run the affairs of the party and also led to a huge lack of public trust in this party founded by the greatest African ever to live.

These energies have been more expended on pitching battles as to who is smarter instead of concentrating on the important task raising resources and finding a good organizational structure for the party. What is most frustrating to the foot soldiers of the party and the sympathetic second generation Nkrumaists is that those with huge clout and publicity leverage have used their opportunities and platforms to widen the gap between the two sides.

But seriously what are the merits of the arguments of these two sides?

It is worth dissecting the position of the PAG and their allies since their suggestion of winnable strategy is the most radical and unconventional yet seen in the country’s political history. Their insistence on having a so-so-called ‘strategic alliance’ with the NPP to shore up its presence in parliament raises a lot of questions.

In the context of Ghanaian constitutional configuration of the fourth republic and the political experience of the country it a highly contentions suggestion.

Ghana runs an executive presidential system where all policies and programmes are made an implemented by the executive cabinet led by the president.

Our constitution does not allow for the horse trading, negotiation and coalition building that characterizes political practice in exclusively parliamentary Democracies. Also given the trend and practice of legislation in Ghanaian parliament it effectively the ruling party that can initiate and pass laws.

Given this background any alliance that allows CPP members few seats in parliament only gives the CPP no more than few lame ducks. Bearing in mind that NPP and CPP have very little to share in terms of ideology and political tradition even if some CPP MPs are appointed as ministers, then will be obliged to implement the polices and programs of the president not that the CPPs (as has happened with Dr. Kwesi Ndoum). In competitive politics which is being practiced in Ghana, it is only the executive that influence the direction of the country and it is presidential power that would make the electorate feel the impact of the party on their lives.

The Ghanaian electorate has many sides to them but despite the tendance for the “skirt and blouse” phenomena in few constituencies, the general trend is that they vote for parties with better prospect of prendential power. we are not in such a brave new world tha,t the electorate would suddenly see a few CPP MPs as a sign of credible power and influence.

What is more, the practice where such an alliance results in the smaller party joining the majority bench and for all intents and purposes fall under the whip of the majority. We know how strong the whip is and how often it is used in Ghana’s parliament.

Furthermore the history of parliamentary practice in the country has taught us that it is only the Government that has the wherewithal to initiate and push through any legislation in parliament.

In the long and eventful history of the 4^th Republican parliament, there is not even single instance of a private members bill or legislation being initiated in the house. So the position of the PAG that with a good representation in parliament, CPP can achieve clout and push through some of its ideas, practices and programs is only a naïve wishful thinking. The voting record of the few CPP members in parliament actually shows that the power of the whip is more potent than ideas and independence in the chamber of parliament.

Furthermore it looks as if the PAG and their allies have over estimated the magnanimity of the NP.

How far is the NPP going to go to tolerate the parliamentary hunger of the PAG and the CPP for that matter? How may seats the NPP willin and able to cede to CPP in exchange for the support of the NPPs presidential candidate?

The reality is that the NPP is also involved in competitive politics and have different dynamics at play in their party plus it having to deal with the NDC.

For the CPP to have any sort of influence or significance in parliament it must win at least 30 seats in parliament However it must be emphatically stated that the NPP will not be willing to cede that much to the CPP. It will not even go beyond 10 seats. These seats will definitely be in NPP dominant areas. The PAG and their allies will have their fingers burned and leave them bitterly disappointed just like they were before in 1992 and 1996 election when alliances were formed with the NPP and NDC respectively in traditionally CPP territory seat that the CPP could have won on its own.

It must be made clear that strategically such an alliance will not help the CPP achieve its ultimate aim -presidential power to steer the country back on the development track.

What even bad about the PAG is the way the go about their agitation; behaving like a rat that scatters grains it cannot eat. Having failed to convince their fellow members they decided to publicly ridicule and campaign against their presidential candidate duly elected by the party congress in 2004.Their actions only succeeded in disturbing the internal organization that was badly needed to rebuild the party.

The PAG and their sympathizers must realize that their strategic alliance suggestion is not good enough and they must come but with a better one or leave the running of the party to their executives who have been duly elected according to the constitution of the party.

The PAG must accept to work with the confines of the CPP constitution and stop their tyranny of ideas tactics which is dividing and destroying the party. I am sure they do not think of themselves as wiser than the over 1000 delegates that decided that their strategy was not good enough from a strategic point of view as been explained above… it is fatally flawed.

If they really wish to remain in this great party they must accept the wisdom of the majority and the constitution of the party.

I also urge the National executives of the CPP to be accommodating to fresh thinking and suggestion and adopt reconciliatory tone in their dealings with all party member especially those with some clout.

The must crucial element that can lead the party back to power is organization. There are 3 main strategies in the tool box to rebuilding the party; these are is organization, organization and organization.

Ideologies are well and good but the crust of the matter is that the ordinary voter responds better to organization than fancy articulation academic ideology.

The CPP must be prepared breach it old traditions and conventional structure to re-organize to attract the voters in the middle.

A DIFFICULT OUTCOME OF CPP CONGRESS

As Kwesi Ndoum Secures flagbearership Slot

The historic CPP congress which took place at The KNUST campus over the weekend threw up a lot of challenges to the members of the CPP nationwide who were full of optimism about the fortunes of the party. As expected the crucial race of flagbearership was a straight fight between Paa Kwesi Ndoum a former Partner of Deloitte an Acoounting Consultancy, and an active member of the Kuffour administration; and Proffessor Badu Akosah a pathologist and a former Head of the Ghana Health Service.

After a very competitive and uplifting congress Paa kwesi was declared the winner with 53% of the delegate vote.In addition members of Paa Kwesi's team swept the board in other positions of executive power with the party. Mr. Nadi Nylander was elected Chairman, Kwamena Greenstreet as general secreatary and Alamisi and Organiser.This was an emphatic statement by the delegates.

Paa is a qualified person who has better visibility and national recognition coupled with a lifetime of achievement and success. He is also well endowed to finance a well oiled campaign.

However the choice has led some CPP to members scratching their heads. The popular choice outside the conference room was Prof AKosa. I was included in this consensus.The track record of Paa Kwesi's commitment to the CPP is really patchy and many people in the middle and tired of the NPP Administration are also frustrated by the choice because of the association of Kwesi with the NPP over the years. He does not represent the fresh start that people are clamouring for.Some CPP activist even go as far as calling him an NPP mole who will sell the party to the string pullers of the NPP. Some alleged that his campaign which was by far the most expensive was financed by the NPP.

For me, my opinion is a little bit more complex than just a disaster.

First i see Ndoum as sellable more than he can be credited for. However his act of political suicide of deciding to campaign against the CPP Flag bearer in the 2004 general elections is going to stack against him heavily.Also his long association with the NPP could be both harmful and beneficial depending on how it is used by both Friends and foes.But the very fact that i see Ndoum to an ambitious man assures me somewhat that he will fight the election fiercely.

The outcome of this watershed CPP congress has thrown up a lot of questions than answers for the future of the CPP.

The CPP knows it is not going to win this electtion, however most CPP activist are hoping this will be the beggining of good things for this sleeping giant of Ghanain politics

CPP IN A LEADERSHIP CONTEST THAT WILL DEFINE THE FUTURE OF THE GREAT PARTY

>>> Two men in Pole Position This weekend could prove to a watershed fro thye CPP. At the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (an institution named after the Great Nkrumah, founder of the CPP), the CPP will attemt to launch a renaissance of the party that holds more hope for Ghanaians than any other party. The CPP will attempt to elect a presidential candidate to fight the election in 2008.

CPP WAKING UP

It is probably the Best new our jubilee year. It is an auspicious year and it will be an appropriate time for the party founded by the Great Nkrumah to wake up and take its rightful place in the political landscape of this country.

Over the last few weeks the CPP has been enjoying a lease of positive media attention. The party has been in the public space for more good raesons than any other cause. Any body who wacthes the political scene in Ghana will attest tonthe fact that when such things happen then it means there is a fundamental shift in the political dynamics of this country.

The 50th Annivessary celebrations has refocused more attention on the graetness of Nkrumah and what he has achieved for this country. Every one looks back with pleasant nostalgia of the really good old days. The detractors of Nkrumah ,try as they could did not succeed in eroding the solid reputation the Great Man built for himself accross Ghana and Africa.It was such a beautiful sight to watch all the leaders of Africa converge on the Independece Park and pay deserved tribute to the Great Man and thank him for his help in the liberation strugle all over the continent. Also the recently ended AU summit in Accra where our current president (as the Host) and majority of the presidents gathered failed miserably to come up with a decision on a Continental Union government showed how forward looking Nkrumah was when he proposed a union government in 1957 at the time of Ghanas Independence.

Again this resurgence of the CPP is a sign of the yearning of ghanaians to have another party that will bring a new dael and attitude toi the table.And CPP seems to be best placed to fill this gap.

I am hoping those in authority will not blow this opportunity and capitalise on the groundswell of sentimental affection that is being shown. The leadership of the CPP must match this show of support and interest with equal harwork and organisational prowess.

PLEASE DO NOT LET OSAGYEFO AND THE PEOPLE OF GHANA DOWN ;CPP!!!