Lo! the FONKAR GAME Sunyani congress is over with a whooping landslide victory for the sitting President of the republic His Excellency John Evans Atta Mills to once again lead the NDC to contest for his second term presidency in the 2012 general elections as his only contender, the former first lady and wife of Jerry John Rawlings, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings is handed over a huge defeat amidst a high level of acrimony, character assassination and casting of innuendos that took center stage in the run up to the congress.
Am very sure most readers would be wondering whether it was necessary at all for Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings to have contested John Mills who is also the sitting President of the country and a member of her own party. In my view, it was a needless adventure of the Rawlingses as this has handed over to them the last thing they ever wished for; a huge disgrace. But why would Nana Konadu think of winning this contest? The Rawlings have been living in a lie all this while because the Rawlingses have thought they still wield power even though power eluded them just after their 19yrs of presidency ended in December, 2000.
Since 1981, when Jerry Rawlings after a coup d’état assumed the reins of power, his PNDC/NDC party members including the bigwigs of the party, party foot soldiers and ordinary members alike awarded him the impeccable supreme being status, where he was seen as the all knowing, one who was not to be challenged in any decision making process, one who was always right and not to talk about reprimanding him and what have you. Such was the personality Rawlings had assumed over the years until 2009 when lo and behold the law Professor John Evans Atta Mills took over the Presidency of our dear country Ghana. At this point, mighty power begins to erode the impeccable Supreme Being status the Rawlingses had acquired between 1981 and 2008.Here former allies of the Rawlingses begin to pledge their allegiance to the new power in President John Mills for ministerial positions among other political appointments. Delegates of the NDC party are not left out as they also rewarded accordingly while the Rawlingses rest on the notion as being the founders of the party and subsequently, the ultimate decision makers of the party forgetting the shift of power and its concomitant switch of allegiance. So for the Rawlingses to have still banked their hopes on the delegates who were looking at the advantages of being close to power than to be far away from power was very unthinkable and an unpardonable mistake on their part. Why would delegates vote against the incumbent President who is keeping their palms warm now and possibly get to enjoy more if the NDC is to make it again in 2012? It was so an obvious decision any rational being would take given the opportunity.
In another perspective, the huge defeat and disgrace thrown into the face of the Rawlingses is a lesson not only to the Rawlingses but to all individuals who find themselves in leadership positions at any point in time. When one has power he should be mindful of hero worshippers, stooges and sycophants who would appear to be on your side just for the benefits they derive from being by your side and not because they really support, care or even love you. Am not sure the Rawlingses ever dreamt of being publicly humiliated in the way and manner it happened to them at the just ended NDC congress held in Sunyani. Did anyone ever imagine the Victor Smiths, the Ahwois, Awoonors, Cecelia Johnsons, Hannah Bissiws, Sherry Ayitteys, the Moulds among others standing against their once upon a time master Jerry John Rawlings? Such is life!
Kwaku Yeboah
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