There is a trend on our political space that must be cured to sustain our democracy, peace, stability and security.
In spite of the persistent reminders on state actors to establish strong institutions, some of our political actors are singing discordant tunes and are thus stalling our development.
The leader of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama has been babbling about the election management body, the Electoral Commission (EC), led by the Chairperson, Mrs Jean Mensa. The distinguishing characteristics of John Mahama is his penchant to complain about state institutions that he defended as the President of the Republic.
While as President and presidential candidate of the NDC in 2016, he asked the people to leave Charlotte Osei alone to do her work as the independent umpire of the electoral process. During his tenure, John Mahama asked political parties to stop harassing the Chairperson of the EC, Charlotte Osei and rather cooperate with her.
On a political tour in the then Brong Ahafo Region, he said, “We have some political parties that have the tradition of haranguing and just harassing the Commission, and I think that must stop. Leave the Commission in peace to do its work, it has done it before, so let them do the work.”
This same person today is harassing the Jean Mensa-led EC for reason only known to the executioner who dreads lying supine.
Addressing a lecture at the Christian Service University in Kumasi, John Mahama whined about Jean Mensa and her deputies for actions that reduce the independence of the EC. He claimed the EC is in bed with the governing NPP to rig the elections, saying his beloved Charlotte Osei presided over a truly independent electoral umpire.
We are telling John Mahama today that because we do not have short memories we can recount countless demonstrations by “Let My Vote Count” crusaders to get the Charlotte Osei EC to enfranchise all eligible voters to participate in the election of our leaders, actions, John Mahama described as harassment.
Thus in the context of John Mahama’s harassment of the Jean Mensa-led EC, we can then conclude that he is only showcasing one of his characteristics as a very consistently inconsistent person.
Our former president today beats his chest that although he appointed Charlotte Osei as EC Chairperson, he still lost the 2016 elections. John Mahama requires some education on the electoral process because despite the persistent explanation by their own, Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan that elections are won at the polling stations, he has turned a deaf ear to the wise counsel.
And in that confused state, John Mahama continues to harass Jean Mensa and her deputies for shadows he encounters in his dreams. We advice John Mahama to stop harassing the EC and leave Jean Mensa in peace to do her work. We can assure John Mahama that Jean Mensa would superintend over the 2024 elections as was the case in 2020, and declare the choice of the people as president-elect.
What John Mahama has to do from now to December is for him to hit the ground running to for instance tell Ghanaians how his return would not throw the country into dumsor.
Just as John Mahama lost elections supervised by Charlotte Osei, we assure John Mahama that Jean Mensa would declare him winner if the people repose their confidence in him. John Mahama should stop fighting shadows and recognise that the people are sovereign and power resides with them.
Fellow Ghanaians, don’t give ear to the vain babblings of John Mahama who believes in attack on institutions and personalities in order to discredit them in the eyes of the people. Ghanaians would not be swayed by the false information that the EC is a rigging machine, for after all in 2020 they served notice that Jean Mensa would declare John Mahama president. That wish is history.
Fast forward, we all now know the role the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, played in resolving that political impasse. It is through this mediation and correspondence from John Mahama that we got to know that in order to achieve a deal, the defeated NDC presidential leader had put in a conditionality, and that was he should be allowed to stay in the official residence of the Vice President as part of his retirement package.
After requesting this high-end building, John Mahama in his bid to gain sympathy then turns round to condemn the compensation package for Article 71 office holders, claiming he would scrap it if given opportunity to be president again. Even up till date he continues to enjoy ex gratia, and when pushed to set the example now he retorted, “I am a pensioner”.
It is against this background that we have always urged the Ghanaian electorate not to be swayed by populism but to cast their votes based on concrete plans to take us to the Promised Land.