Rule of law used to guide the steps of the members of the New Patriotic Party and it was no respecter of persons. In 2000, a party giant, Ernest Kakra Essamuah praised the performance of NDC’s John Atta Mills at a press conference. He got expelled from the party for he violated Art. 3. 9(1), which frowns on any member showing support for a candidate other than the party’s.
Then, things started changing after good old B.J. da Rocha stepped aside due to age.A cult of untouchables, was formed within the party which must determine what must go on. The party rules and regulations were there to favour the cult.
Anyone perceived not to belong to this cult, could easily lose any internal election, since the delegates could be compromised to vote against them. Even sitting MPs could be victims.
President Kufuor suffered attacks from this cult. In 1999, he was accused of not conducting a good campaign and Congress was requested for, to assemble again and replace him. General Secretary Dan Botwe, halted that request. Earlier, after the 1996 General Elections, the party national chairman, Rt, Hon. Peter Ala Adjetey, came out openly to accuse Kufuor of embezzling party funds. Kufuor had undertaken a private and personal trip to the US, where some friends, relatives and associates gave him some money, but Ala Adjetey demanded and even threatened court action to retrieve money which did not belong to the party.This false accusation could only make Ghanaians view the party as a corrupt one.
Today, Adwoa Safo is being rebuked for saying things that are classified as violation of the Party’s Constitution.
The Party’s rules and regulations are found in its Constitution and conventions but unfortunately, they can be applied in very bias manners. Adwoa Safo is out there speaking and she is being accused of violating Art. 3 (5a) of the Party’s Constitution. What does this Article talk about the DUTIES OF A MEMBER, and it reads:
- A. A Member shall have the right and duty at all times to: (1) promote and defend the good name of the Party; (2) protect the unity of the Party; (3) be loyal and truthful to the Party; (4) abide by and publicly uphold the decisions of the Party; (5) carry out his or her duties faithfully and with honesty to the best of his or her ability; (6) participate fully in the activities of the Party and ensure that the local organs of the Party work effectively and accountably; (7) pay dues as well as give donations for special programmes and activities as may be decided from time to time by the Party; (8) register as a voter for the purposes of public elections and referenda upon attaining the age of 18 years or above, subject to the Constitution of the Republic.
Which portion was abused by Adwoa Safo? How can one promote the good name of the party, without bringing out its faults and assisting in correcting them? And it seems some sections of this Article can be in conflict with others. For example, Section (3) is talking about loyalty and truthfulness. Loyalty is questionable in that even as it can build trust and strengthen relationships, it can also be misapplied or used to justify harmful actions. Sycophants play a major role here.
Truthfulness, however is a virtue which when fully applied, can be in conflict with loyalty. And how can a party member who should be honest as stated in section (4), publicly uphold a party decision when it is wrong and lawless? And section (5) is talking about the need for one to be faithful and honest. There is a conflict here, also. A party member can be faithful to a decision that violates the Party Constitution but can he be honest in undertaking something that clearly violates the same Constitution?
Now here we have Adwoa Safo, who wants to be truthful and honest. What sections of the Article 3(5a) has she violated?
Most of what she said are no hidden secrets. For her attacks on the Ocquaye family, I must be honest, unfortunate as they are, I have no evidence to support her here.
In 2021 we heard about the clash between Adwoa Safo, then minister of the Gender ministry, which is in charge of the school feeding programme and Mrs Quarshigah, a national coordinator of the programme. Talking to some caterers under the school feeding programme, horrible acts of corruption came out which indicted the national coordinator.
At the time that the government was determined to eradicate corruption in the system, Adwoa did what was right by removing Mrs. Quarshigah from the programme. The old lady was re-instated by Jubilee House without prior knowledge of Adwoa Safo. And she was the minister and had no control and authority over her own ministry. Is somebody, serious?
I thought the Party should have rebuked Jubilee House and demanded that the right thing was done. That did not happen, rather it encouraged party members to maligned her.
I encountered another cabinet minister for assistance in getting a CEO under his ministry. A young man working in that agency came narrating to me, about some rot going on there that could destroy party and government. I went to see the minister. He sighed and said “Hon, the CEO does not answer to me. He only answers to ….and …. Even as minister, if I need information about that agency, I must go to see them” I said, “WHAT?”
I must apologise that I could not bring out the names of those persons, because the alphabets that form their names are not familiar to me and they are not on my keyboard. Thank you.
How can ministers not have full control over their ministry? Could it be the reason why Nana Addo thought that it would be morally wrong to reshuffle his ministers? And the Party was aware of this wrong practice and did nothing?
Adwoa Safo took a long break, and the Party promoted acts that led to making her unpopular and this affected her chances in her constituency. Under a democratic system, she is now out opening her defense, and the Party wants to stop her? How unfortunate? Where lies the party’s principle of listening to the other side as mark of fairness and justice?
If people in the NPP who have been mistreated by the Party, will also start talking, the NPP maybreak up. Attempts at labelling Adwoa Safo a bad nut will do the Party more harm.
The word going round that she should know the party made her what she is, is very nauseating. Every party member contributes their quota in one way or the other to the party, with some contributing more than others and Adwoa Safo is one of them. I am not saying because of that she must be treated any special. All I am saying is that some cult in the party want to run the party the way they feel like, not caring who is at the receiving end. This is hurting the NPP.
If people are to talk…hmmmm. I do not want to make statements from that area. However, two things need to be presented here.
Why was Paul Afoko suspended as chairman of the NPP when he was about to resource the grassroot and make them to be able to afford what they want instead of selling out their votes and conscience for pittance?
And when Alan Kyerematen was contesting for the flag bearer slot in the NPP, all those who supported his bid were considered traitors of the party’s course. The party’s convention, has it that no party officer and government appointee should openly endorse any candidate in an internal election. Those who openly endorsed Alan were suspended, while the Party was silent on those who openly endorsed Bawumia.
In 2008, Seth Adjei Baah (Nkawkaw); Joseph Osei-Owusu (Bekwai); Yaw Ofori-Kuragu (Bosome-Freho), then a sitting MP, and Saani Iddi (Wulensi) were NPP members who dropped the party’s colours and went independent. Art. 3 (9) was not activated on them.
Yet in 2020, when the NPP sitting MP of Fomena, Hon Asiamah Amoako, run independent, he was expelled from the Party.
Adwoa Safo is talking and the best thing the Party should do is to be humble enough to go to her and plead with her to cease talking. The threats on her are very hypocritical and further exposes that error in NPP, where some people live by the law and other die by it.
Hon. Kennedy Agyapong could say terrible things about the party, like going public that there is not one single sensible person in the party and he regretted bitterly for joining the NPP and never did the Party call him to order.
NPP’s deputy communication director, Ernest Owusu-Bempah, in appreciating President Mahama for replacing Dampare as IGP added that he had severally advised Nana Addo against Dampare but he would not listen. A party national officer is out there saying ex-president Akufo-Addo does not have a listening ear, meaning he is allergic to advices, and the Party is silent on this.
Adwoa Safo was cruelly treated by some NPP members on air, when she went to tend for her sick child, and the Party said nothing but encouraged them. Now that she is back and telling her side of the story, the Party says she should hush up. Where does this exist in a democracy?
If the Party could not whip almost two million of its supporters in line to vote for the NPP in 2024 General Elections, it must know that members can now openly challenge the Party when they feel mistreated.
Punishing Adwoa Safo will be then worst thing to do.
Hon. Daniel Dugan
