NDC voters last week convincingly elected former President John Mahama as the flagbearer of their party, the man to lead them into next year’s general elections.
Mr. Mahama’s triumph was well deserved; he had campaigned tirelessly around the country, reminding Ghanaians of the tough economic situation they were in, and pleading with them to give him a second chance to continue the good work he said he had done when he was the President.
So it was little surprise that the NDC responded positively to Mr. Mahama’s message and handed him victory on a silver platter which wasn’t in doubt anyway. Everything pointed to him emerging as the overall favorite.
Saturday’s victory, to put it modestly, was overwhelming, emphatic and decisive; Mr. Mahama easily crushed his opponents who have since graciously conceded defeat and pledged to lend their support to Mr. Mahama in his bid to recapture the Flagstaff House.
One salient point that we should all note about Saturday’s elections was its free and fair atmosphere. There were scant reports of intimidation, violence, of ballots being stolen or mishandled or official misconduct, for that matter.
And given the violence that marked recent political events in the country, the Ghana Police Service force should be patted on the back for helping the NDC to conduct and pull off a peaceful election.
Though there are many who have questioned the wisdom behind Mr. Mahama’s quest for a second time in office, what is not being discussed or talked about is the fact that he is going into the 2020 elections with a huge advantage; he has a powerful message to sell to Ghanaians.
The economy is in a tailspin, youth unemployment is out of this world, and the cedi continues its downward spiral with no end in sight.
And worse, security in the country is increasingly becoming less guaranteed, what with vigilante groups running amok. Truth be told; Ghanaians live in fear of these muscled and super-vicious young men.
The tide seems to be in Mr. Mahama’s favor. The current president is vulnerable and could very easily be shown the exit. But this scenario would only be possible if Mr. Mahama articulates and telegraphs his message in such ways that Ghanaians will buy it and subsequently put him above the current President in 2020.
All told, the stage is set for yet another political battle between former President John Mahama and his successor and arch enemy, the man who ousted him nearly three years ago and currently occupies Jubilee House, President, Nana Akuffo Addo.
It is 2016 all over again and Ghanaians should expect fireworks from the two prominent politicians. There will character assassination, name calling and distortion of facts, by the two men and their armies of supporters and surrogates.
It won’t be a clean fight I can assure you of that. The gentlemen will apply all the dirty tricks in the book. It is going to be a nasty confrontation, albeit in a gentlemanly way.
There is a lot at stake here and the two men will duke it out like prized fighters in a ring ostensibly to win the endorsement, hearts and souls of Ghanaians.
At the end of it all, what matters most is the supreme interest of Ghana and the hope here is that the two gentlemen will be cognizant of this all important fact as they prepare to face each other yet again.
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