It’s an act of bad faith to contest Mahama - Oppong-Fosu tells NDC
A minister of state in the erstwhile Mahama administration, Mr Akwasi Oppong-Fosu, has said it will be an act of bad faith for appointees of the former President to cross swords with him over the flagbearship of the party if he decides to lead the party in the next election.
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Speaking to the Daily Graphic in Accra last Tuesday, Mr Oppong-Fosu said no matter the competences of the former appointees,it would be a stab in the back of the former President if they contested him in the primary.
There have been reports of some former appointees of Mr John Dramani Mahama lacing their boots for the presidential primary.
Although some of them, including Mr Ekwow Spio-Gabrah, who was the Minister of Trade and Industry, and Mr Victor Smith, former Ghana's Ambassador to the United Kingdom, have come out to deny interest, others are still mute over the reports.
Other names making the rounds include the former Chief Executive of the National Health Insurance Authority, Mr Sylvester Mensah, and a former Board Chairman of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Prof. Joshua Alabi.
Already, members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) are waiting with bated breath for the report of the Kwesi Botchway committee, which is probing the loss of the party in the 2016 general election.
Ultimate blame
Mr Oppong-Fosu, who served as Minister of Environment, Science and Technology and also Minister of State at the Presidency during Mahama’s administration, said even though as leader Mr Mahama would take the ultimate blame for the loss of the party, the appointees could also not escape blame.
"He gave each one of the appointees a job to do. Even though he takes ultimate responsibility, the collective effort of his administration would have led to his re-election.
"So if the former President has the desire to seek re-election and you step out to say I want to contest you, it is an act of bad faith," he said.
Rawlings - Mahama dichotomy
In what appeared to be a post-mortem of the party's electoral defeat, Mr Oppong-Fosu said it was regrettable that the Council of Elders of the party could not exercise their responsibility in ensuring that there was a connection between the government and the party.
"Now, the other aspect of the dilemma we find ourselves in as a party is the upsurge of groupings around personalities such as JM Loyalists and Rawlings Loyalists as if there is a contest between the two.
"To me, it shouldn't be the case because the role of Rawlings in the NDC cannot be contested because he is the founder," the former minister stated.
He indicated that looking at where Flt Lt Rawlings came from as the revolutionary leader to be the founder of the NDC, "he is the undisputed torchbearer of our party ."
"He is not in the contest for any position for which reason people are creating this phanthom groupings for their own interests," he posited.
Reflection
Mr Oppong-Fosu said the situation the NDC found itself in called for reflection rather than accusations and counter-accusations.
" The 2016 elections must make us appreciate who we are as a party. Are we still adherents of our values of probity and accountability of public life which formed the bedrock of the revolution and which gave birth to the NDC party?" he questioned.
In providing an answer to the question,he said: "This is what should occupy us than vying for positions and pursuing individual ambitions.”