Hans-Hermann Hoppe in his superb analysis of democracy observes that "prime ministers and presidents are selected for their proven efficiency as morally uninhibited demagogues. Thus, democracy virtually assures that only bad and dangerous men will ever rise to the top of government." Those who seek political office appear to be eager to break the moral code that most of us are willing to follow. The greater the power of the political office that a candidate is seeking, the more likely it is that that individual has no sense of right and wrong.
Some of the questions that immediately come into mind are: why are scoundrels successful in the political arena? Even if we recognize that morally corrupt individuals will seek to rule over others, why do voters support such candidates? Would we not expect people to vote for morally upright candidates? Do corrupt candidates have an advantage over candidates with integrity?
Too often, some Ghanaians confuse others into thinking that the CPP "can never win" power. With a lot of uphill struggle, the CPP will be able to convince potential voters that their vote will make a difference. One may call it democracy, but if we may recall, it was during the 2008 Presidential and Parliamentary elections that Ghanaians saw the re-emergence of the new CPP.
Admittedly, CPP has been in power before, but the last win the party won the General Election was 1979 when Dr. Hilla Liman won on the ticket of the PNP with the support of the CPP’s organization machine. Since then, the NPP and the NDC have fought for the leadership of the country. Even today, some people still believe that the CPP would probably need a wholesale collapse of votes on the part of the NDC or NPP to make major gains.
It is regrettable that a lot of people do not identify with the difficulty of the party. The setback with the party is not lack of leadership but bad attitude of some members. The poor showing of the party over the years is not because it lack leaders but it is the result of the fact that some people in the party have always sat back to ''watch and see'' how other people will make it attractive.
It is on record that when people are elected into office to lead the party, some people deliberately malign and sabotage their efforts to ensure that they do not succeed. What is even disturbing is that all those who have acted in this way were often in bed with NDC or NPP and as a result did not want the good of the party. CPP members must believe that the party is in the political scene as a third force, to win political power and govern but not to play second fiddle to any political party.
Interestingly, those who tear the party apart from within are the same people who are swift to declare these elected officers as ineffective, inefficient, and non-CPP. Such people must positively revolutionize their mental orientation for the good of the part. If we all support elected officers, they will deliver to our expectations. Back-biting and the tendency that some people are more important than the others, is not the way to go. What we have failed to recognize is that no individual can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it. Members of this great party must believe in the party’s motto (Forward Ever, Backward Never) so that if we all move forward together, victory will take care of itself. Possibly, the leaders of the party must put in place punitive measures to sanction any CPPist whose intention is to benefit from the ill-gotten gains of the NDC or NPP at the expense of the great CPP. In the same way, comrades of the party must be made to understand that the party is not for anybody; it is for all of us.
As party people who are interested in ensuring that the party wins political power, we must promote unanimity and cohesiveness at all times for the Ghanaian electorate to take us serious and bring to a close the gratuitous ill will and two-facedness. We have every right to campaign for anybody we like but whiles we do that, we must make sure that we do not undermine the contributions of those who kept faith with the party and maintained it from the beginning of the Fourth Republic until this time.
It may interest a lot of people to know that, high-flying personalities like Hon. Ibrahim Alabira, Hon. Lawyer Abekah, Hon. Freddy Blay (Now with NPP), Hon. Mrs. Mary Ankomah Boakye Boateng (National Women Organizer Aspirant), Hon. Kojo Armah and Hon. Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom (Flagbearer Aspirant) have all been in parliament before Hon. Samia and championed the course of the CPP. Similarly, eminent people like Alhaji Asuma Banda, Prof. Abubakar Alhassan, Prof. Dr. Edmund Delle (National Chairman Aspirant) and Comrade Ladi Nylander (Current National Chairman and Aspirant) have all directed the affairs of the party until today.
Surprisingly to most Ghanaians, this is the first time in the history of the CPP that it is preparing to go for an early congress to elect its National officers on 23rd - 24th July at Takoradi and later elect Flagbearer on 30th September 2011 at Tamale. This is unprecedented and credit must go to the current leadership of the party, especially the chairman, comrade Ladi Nylander. This was not the case in time past where the party often elected its National officers just some few months before general elections.
It is also under the leadership of Comrade Ladi Nylander that the party has now become attractive to alot of young people. One can equally say without any contradiction that his leadership has amended the CPP constitution and introduced ‘How CPP will do it series’ which has brought on board all the splinter groups within the party. Does he not deserve our commendation instead of the needless chastisement? If today, Hon. Samia is interested in doing what they have done, let us encourage her and conduct ourselves in a way that would not create inkling in the minds of many people that without her position, the party would have collapsed. Indeed one person alone cannot breathe life into the kismet of the party; it will take a collective effort.
What all true CPPist must understand is that, there is no way a boat can go forward if each one is rowing their own way. The observation one can copy from the behaviour of wild ducks is that, even though they make a lot of noise, they also have the sense to benefit from occasionally flying in formation. Can the CPP learn any lesson from the wild ducks in its forward match as 2012 is the obvious opportunity for the CPP to win political power? As comrades of the great CPP, it is important we make a clean breast that regardless of our differences, we will always strive shoulder to shoulder because we believe in each other. In the eyes of the Ghanaian electorate, CPP can be seen as the most effective political party when they support each other without discomfiture, unkind remarks and disagree without. In joining together there is power!
Paa Kow Ackon
[email protected]
CPP Activist, Korley Clottey Constituency