A write up by one Yaw Okyere Addo had the headline, 'Anybody but Jake" .I was at a loss as to the real motive of the author to give such a sensational headline to a feature whose content is greatly at variance with the title. The scales fell off from my eyes and right away the story by Honourable Balado Manu about what mother mouse told her child came to me. It is not the sweetness or the taste that they chew the raw pepper on the farm. The destructive instinct makes them do it. So it is with Yaw Okyere Addo.
Freedom of Expression: One of the tenets of democracy is right or freedom to speak out on any topic or issue that one passionately feels strongly about. So I won't quarrel with the writer for choosing such a sensational headline in an attempt to diminish the chances of Jake Otanka Obetsebi Lamptey in the titanic battle for the chairmanship position of the NPP. But I have learnt one great thing which I would like to uphold in my write-ups. And it is that I shall try as much as lie within my power not to make any negative comment about any aspirant to any of our elective positions in the party.. I would highlight the positive aspects and contributions of all my preferred candidates. This much, I promise. But that does not mean that if anyone makes some negative and derogatory comments on my preferred candidate, I will not rebuff them in the strongest term. However I shall try to let decorum prevail in my dealing with the issue.
The purpose of this write-up: It is upon that premise that I take on Yaw Okyere Addo on some of the negative things he said about Jake which I believe were deliberate and calculated attempts to shoot him down from the enviable and high esteem he (Jake) wields in peoples' hearts.
Frivolous allegations against Jake: Yaw Okyere Addo alleged in his write-up that Jake had travelled to Utah on the Latter Days Saints invitation with his wife and in reciprocation he facilitated the granting of a development permit to the Church to put up their West African Headquarters in Accra. What is Jake's offence here? What is selfish in Jake's action if indeed it is the truth? Don't we have other churches coming to open up branches here in Ghana? We have churches like the Deeper Life Ministry, Redeemed Christian Church of Ghana, The Synagogue Church of All Nations, Winners Chapel, The Church of the Lord (Aladura) and many other churches now finding their way to Ghana from other countries. These churches are allowed by our law to put up permanent structures in any part of the country. So if through the ingenuity of Jake Okanta Obetsebi Lamptey, the Church has put up permanent structures in the country, why should we crucify him for his action/ He should rather be commended for ensuring that the West African Headquarters of the Church is brought to Ghana. The structures are on our land and nobody can remove them from here.
I am not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Days Saints and I do not speak for the Church. What I write here is my own personal opinion on the matter.
Yaw Okyere Addo also alleges that before the Church could be given the permit, Jake ensured that his daughter was given a scholarship to study at the prestigious Brigham Young University. What a petty character Yaw Okyere Addo is! What is selfish in what Jake did? Did he conduct an investigation as to how and why Jake’s daughter got admission into thew University? Is the daughter the first Ghanaian to have been given a scholarship to study in any prestigious university in the United States?
Getting admission into any of those Universities in the United States is not as difficult as Yaw Okyere Addo would like to paint the picture for us as long as one has the relevant qualifications. In earlier times, getting financial aid was also not a herculean task. If one excelled in any of the admission tests like SAT, ACT,TOEFL, one’s chances were brightened. I also know that the Church offered financial support to poor but brilliant pupils here in Ghana. The Church sponsored some middle school leavers from my holy village to study in the United States in the early eighties. So I don’t see the whining, and cries of Yaw Okyere Addo in this instance. We are talking about important things like the Chairmanship of our Great Osono Party not trivial ones like a who was given an opportunity to travel out of the country and who wasn’t.
The reference to these trivial issues depict the picture of someone who was denied the opportunity to travel, hence the resort to this blackmail – all in an attempt to tarnish the image and good name of Jake Obetsebi Lamptey. What is selfish in having an opportunity to travel out of the country? Would the writer have rejected the opportunity if it had been given to him and his daughter?
What is it in Jake Okanta Obetsebi Lamptey that would not make him an effective National Chairman of the Great Osono Tradition? If there is, let anyone speak up or forever remain silent!
Buying of a State Bungalow: This issue was blown out of proportion by the NDC in the heat of last Presidential Elections. At the time Jake decided to purchase the bungalow, there was a law which permitted one to pay for such a facility just as the law permitted Ministers and MPs to buy their official vehicles when their tenure came to an end. Ministers from both the NDC and NPP have been beneficiaries of this law/convention.
There has been a law governing the sale of not only Government lands but also of Government Property. It is this law that saw to the sale of Government property like City Hotel, Nsawam Cannery, Achimota Lands, the SSNIT Flats at Sakumono, the lands at Haatso and many other state property. This law saw to the divestiture of most State property and nobody has raised an issue over it.
If we have realized that this law is bad, then it is bad, and the state should initiate the process of retrieval all such property from the current owners. I am challenging the apostles of Leave Ga/Adangbe Lands Alone to publish a list of all State bungalows within the capital city and its environs and it will shock you to the marrow the names that will come out.
Juxtapose this with the recent sale of five tractors to Mahama Ayariga, former spokesperson to the President. This law allows two tractors to be purchased by a group of farmers under a co-operative. Mahama Ayariga went with a castle letter-head to purchase tro of those tractors and ended up with five tractors instead. On top of that, he was not a member of any co-operative group.
What about the recent sale of strategic national asset belonging to the National Investment Bank? Are the structures not on Ga Adangbe lands? But the group has kept quiet over it. Let it be stated that at the time Jake made attempts to purchase the bungalow the law allowed him to do so. So, we cannot fault him on his action. Other colleagues have enjoyed the same facility, why deny Jake?. As the matter is before the Judiciary, let us wait until the courts make pronouncement on the issue. We would then be in a better position to analyse the issues properly.
What makes Jake a better candidate? Jake Okanta Obetsebi Lamptey has held numerous positions under the Kufuor-led NPP administration. As the First NPP Chief of Staff at the Presidency, there was nothing on the ground to make the government take off. The success of Kufuor’s administration, could to a larger extent, be traced to the initiatives of Jake and the laudable policies and structures he put in place at the initial period of the administration. Jake went for the best team, and together, they laid a solid foundation for the success story of the Kufuor-led NPP Administration.
Volunteers: He it was, who first came up with the idea that NPP volunteers be sent to the party’s weakest regions as polling agents. One other best policy he designed helped to diffuse the notion that the party did not have support at the grassroots. His dynamism introduced a new lease of life into the party’s rallies. People turned up en-masse just to get a glimpse of this “oyibo” who has been credited with achieving so much within so short a period of time.
Declaration of Collated Results: Another innovative idea he came up with was the strategy that enabled the party to collate and declared announced results from polling stations and constituencies. That was the first time such a thing was being done and it enabled party supporters across the nation to follow and monitor the electoral fortunes of the Great Osono Party.
Equal Opportunities for all Presidential Candidates: Jake initiated the move which was endorsed by the rest of the opposition parties and accepted by the Electoral Commission to allow the Presidential Candidates of the various political parties to have equal slots on national television to broadcast to the entire nation. Before then, none of the opposition parties had access to the state media to propagate their ideals and manifesto.
Easy Accessibility: My call to Jake’s office was quickly picked up by Jake himself. When I told him of the purpose of my call he asked me to call back after ten minutes and he would tell me when I could come to his office. In less than five minutes after my call, Jake personally called and told me to meet him the following day at his office.
I was at his office as earlier on arranged. I asked him why he wanted to be Chairman of the party and his answer was that, he wants “to improve the electoral fortune of the New Patriotic Party”. Having been the Regional Chairman for three consecutive terms, his tenure saw the party’s seats in the Region moving from 9 to 16. When he stepped down, the party’s fortunes plummeted to an all low level of the original 9 seats in the Region.
When I asked him if he is nervous about the outcome of the elections, he had this to say: “Every player exhibits signs of nervousness before an important match. So it is with your opponents. But I am well prepared and so have regained my composure. Having gone round the country and interacted with my immediate constituents who are the foot soldiers I feel reassured that the future of the New Patriotic Party is brighter than ever. This has energized and re-invigorated me to move forward without turning back. Everywhere the message was the same. ‘Jake, give us the old time religion for it is good enough for us.’ My chances are excellent, and I feel fulfilled. Victory is on the way. It will not only be victory for Jake, but for the party and the entire people of Ghana. The impression I got during my interaction with party men and women is that they want me to be Chairman of the party. They told me in unmistaken terms that they want me to lead them and they will follow. How can I turn down such request? I have the flame; in fact I have the light which will guide us on our path to sweet victory. The flame that the people have given me is burning hot in my hands. I shall not let go of that flame until victory comes to the party. However, everything is in the hands of the Almighty God. I have done my best. If God wants me to be party chairman, why not, I will surely be Party Chairman. It is not a do and die affair. But I am sure I stand a better chance of winning”.
Conclusion: As I left My Jake Otanka Obetsebi Lamptey’s office, one thing was paramount on my mind. Here was a workaholic who will not accept failure for an answer. Jake is surely the old time religion the people are yearning for. Let us give it to the people.
Daniel Danquah Damptey s([email protected])