President Akufo-Addo Must Ensure That The Rule Of Law Prevails In Ghana - Not Fear And Panic Caused By NPP Thuggery

''At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst."
                        - Aristotle (384 BC-322 BC)

The two biggest political parties in Ghana seem to be forgetting that this is a nation of laws - and that Ghanaians are a civilised and peace-loving people.

It would appear that the leading lights of the  National Democratic Congress (NDC), are still failing to understand the national mood that led to their defeat in the 7th December, 2016,  presidential and parliamentary elections.

The fact of the matter, is that a majority of voters chose to replace the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) regime of the then President of the Republic of Ghana, President Mahama, with a  New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration led by its  presidential candidate, and now Ghana's new leader, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, on 7th December, 2016, simply because they wanted to ensure that after the elections all NDC members who had been involved in high-level corruption would be investigated, prosecuted and jailed for their crimes against Ghanaians.

The NDC's leading members need to understand that given the prevailing national mood at the time of the elections, even if President Mahama had succeeded in turning Ghana into a paradise on earth during his tenure, his party would still have been voted out of power - because the vast majority of Ghanaians had become disenchanted with their regime: which the NPP had convinced most Ghanaians was a very corrupt government that they needed to remove from power after an 8-year rule.

Whether the regime of President Mahama was more corrupt than the very, very corrupt and nepotistic NPP regime of President Kufuor, is of course open to conjecture.

For all we know, many of the allegations of corruption made against President Mahama's administration might eventually be proven to be baseless - or conversely  exposed to the whole world: if it is indeed  true that in reality it was a very corrupt regime too, that is. Only time will tell.

Whatever be the case, the fact still remains that NPP propaganda during the election campaign was very effective in making Ghanaians feel that they were better off under an NPP administration than continuing to live in a Ghana governed by the NDC. It is a campaign strategy that worked a treat for the NPP as we all know.

From what we are currently witnessing those of us who wanted Ghana to be led by a President Nduom - who pledged he would lead a government of national unity made  up of the most brilliant and honest Ghanaians regardless of their political backgrounds - were absolutely right to suggest that younger generation Ghanaians would be securing their individual futures by plumping for Nduom as President of the Republic of Ghana. But I digress.

The Russian dissident and chess grandmaster Gary Kasparov once said: " The point of modern propaganda isn’t only to misinform or push an agenda. It is to exhaust your critical thinking, to annihilate truth.”

Indeed, the NPP succeeded in annihilating truth on many fronts,  during the election campaign, and got away with it because of their many corrupt mercenary-allies in the Ghanaian media world (Freddie Blay's  loud and self-important mouthpiece the Daily Guide being leader of the pack of sly prevaricators) - who failed to question them adequately about where funding for their many promises would come from in a debt-distressed nation foolishly paying a mostly-unproductive public-sector workforce (that is forever embarking on strike action for yet more pay)  as much as nearly 70 percent of total tax  revenues.

Having won last December's parliamentary and presidential elections by egregious dissembling, today, some of the NPP's leading lights are attempting to write victor's history and are behaving as if they have conquered Ghana - and are therefore entitled to the spoils of war.

So, for example,  instead of undertaking a global search for a truly world-class individual to take over the running of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) - which is in the national interest - they have rather made a square-peg-in-a-round-hole appointment and put a party man without conscience who is a notorious philanderer (in a party full of philandering males from top to bottom) who is also casual with the truth, in charge of a vital revenue source for Ghana.

The question there is: Is such  NDC/NPP-duopoly-pork-barrel-politricks not one of the key reasons why so many public-sector entities are failing? What kind of "change" is that, I ask? Mother Ghana deserves better. Most certainly. Ghanaians do not want the NPP to appoint party hacks into sensitive public-sector  positions that need world-class individuals  manning them - just to provide cushy sinecures for high-ranking rogues without moral compasses.

Hmm, Ghana - enti yewieye paa enei? Asem kesie ebeba debi ankasa.

Both the leaderships of the NDC and NPP need to understand  clearly that the vast majority of ordinary Ghanaians want a fresh start for their country, and insist that all the crooks of the Mahama-era are investigated, prosecuted and jailed for engaging in acts of high-level corruption whiles they were in power. That is what will serve as a deterrent to those now in government.

However, Ghanaians also expect that in seeking to  punish those who cheated Mother Ghana during the Mahama era,  due process will always be followed. Ghana is not a banana republic. Full stop.

This is a nation of laws - and the government of the day has a responsibility to ensure that the rule of law prevails in the process of retrieving all stolen state assets.

On their part, the leaders of the NDC must resort to the courts to protect their members from being harassed by NPP thugs - not threaten to meet force with force in what is a civilised society. That foolish and irresponsible approach is totally out of order - for violence only begets yet more violence.

Above all, in the age of social media, it is important that the President of the Republic of Ghana speaks out against the irresponsible and unlawful actions of  those NPP supporters who are taking the law into their hands across the country in this matter - and claim to be doing so in the national interest.  Pure nonsense on bamboo stilts. It must be halted. Now. Not tomorrow.

The president's deafening silence in this  matter is untenable and intolerable. And it is most unfortunate. Are we to believe that his continued silence is tacit approval of those illegalities? Surely not? That is why he ought to speak to the nation on this matter and make the point strongly that he disapproves of what is going  - and promise to order the security agencies to end those disgraceful and  unlawful actions of the NPP's extremists.

The NPP needs to be aware that the whole world is watching this African beacon of peace and stability - in case the president and his smug set of inner-circle advisors forget that we are living in the era of live-streaming events  on social media platforms: watched daily by hundreds of millions globally.

The president must also reassure Ghanaians that no one will be persecuted in the Ghana that he leads and serves. Ghanaians want to live in a stable country in which people with all shades of opinion can coexist peacefully - which is what used to be the case during the Mahama era at least.

After all democracy is  also a way of life based on tolerance. It is not just a system of government underpinned by constitutions  that define the roles,  powers, and limitations placed on the powers of the  three branches of government: the judiciary, the legislature and the executive - and outlines and protects the rights of citizens, etc., etc.

Members of our nation's hard-of-hearing political class need to understand clearly that the best interests of our democratic country  can never be served, protected and safeguarded through actions that are  blatant illegalities - and no one in this country must be allowed by those who currently govern Ghana to attempt to do so. Haaba.

The buck stops with him: Which is why President Akufo-Addo must ensure that the rule of law prevails in Ghana - not fear and panic caused by  NPP thuggery. Enough is enough. Period.