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By MONTECRISTO
Ghana, civil society, academia, global elections management and the political parties in Ghana must admit that Ghana’s elections management stand in danger of stampede unless careful reforms are made with observersand security agencies in thecentre, together with the Electoral Commission and the political parties.
This is crtitical because the EC’s elaborate system intended to please a segment of the political space, failed to deliver credible, peaceful, incident-free parlaimentrat elections.
It would emerge that whilst the flagbearer contest, on account of the same systems, delivered perfectly, that of the parlaimentary delivered chaos because in attempting to satisfy populist tendencies and agitation, over-liberalised the space, culminating in mayhem and stampede that benefitted violent constituencies and interests.
But this has happened because the Constitution itself is bogus as appear to me are the arguments that people in power and primate beneficiaries raise in allowing the Constitution that we all admit should be reviwed, to continue offending our developmental sensibilities.
Violence on police, military
For the frst time in the history of elections in this country, it was no longer West Ayawaso or Chereponi or Atiwa and Techiman South, it was flagrant, open, naked and downright attack on the security agencies by ordinary citizens claiming they had won not only the presidential elections, but also traditional seats that had been won over the ages by a particular party.
Before that we had – over the same conversations on elections management and determination, a Speaker of the House of Parliament, arrogating unto himself powers that we didn’t know before in this country. It had been a back and forth over basic issues in parliamentary proceedings with the people’s representatives behaving like the ordinary citizens in matters where we had expected decency and eminence.
That absurdity was manifest in MPs who should know better swearing in the name of politics to reverse – without civilised processes- policies that had been taken on and were in operation across all sectors.
Of course, governments have a rght to change and tweak policy; that is a fact. However, if winning elections is simpy about momentary gains, without recourse to research, processes, expert advice and solid, decent and informed argument in Parliament. But that is where we are today.
Message to police, military
If we looked on and cheered naked criminals in political party T-Shirts steal burgle in daylight in the Central Business District of Accra; if welooked on and only videoed for social media consumption, without chasing the animals engaged in those acts of criminality; lf we looked on and cheered, while clearly political actors stampeded EC officials to declare results and ff we looked on while a Vice President wasbarred from campaigning in certain constituencies, we must be creating only a shithousery society, instead of a middleclass economy aspiring to develop on the wings of a 24-hour economy.
My beef, however, is the message criminal segments of the youth are sending to the militaryand the police. And it is dangerous for today and tomorrow, if that tenency is not arrested. Let’s remember, while the politician has a tenure, the police and military are institutions without tenure, together with the judiciary. And, the losers in that regard, would be the youth and the political class as we have just experienced.
It is intriguing how a government can allow itself to be stanpeded into stupor, while goons in politics plot to usurp the authority of the EC, Military and Police, in offering advantage to people without authority to disrupt the processes and push government put of power – with the Speaker of Parlaiment gloating. It is history- negative history that should make the exiting Executive turn in theor graves, were they dead today. Better they died because it is absurd – even naïve.
Postives
All these drunk notes, notwithstanding, there have been positive lessons to this 2024 campaign. The first is that a sober, vigilant politician never says Never. Until the last processes are tidied up, going to slepp like lawyer Kojo Mills is a No No. that lesson must be ;learnt from Bawku to Kasoa and indigenus Accra. Instructive Ashanti Region were not bullied sufficiently to make that impact the NDC intended. Holistically, however, the NDC conspired and beat the system and the NPP the smea way it did in 2008.
Did the NPP learn any lessons? No. in 2008, it was picnicking, instead of unified grassroots campaigning. In 2024, 16 years later, it was still picnicking and waste of resoucres in areas that ddnt matter, particularly, the jungle, jocular space called delegates.
And, we ask, where are the reaserchers in the NPP and the National Youth Organser, National Organiser and the Women’s Organser. Fat cats picnicking, with nothing to show on December 07.
Iliked, however, clear messages the judiciary sent togerher with the police to crminals who wrere caught. My scanning of the media up to date revealed some dozens of suspects before the law – caught for clear acts of criminality and electoral offences. And they should be assured that not even the General Johnson Asiedu Nketia can bail them out – nor Speaker Alban Bagbin, flying without wings.
Message to the global community
Ghana may have secured peace. But this cannot be a sustainable peace, if governments and their institutions of state can sit down and be dribbled – not by the Electoral Commission, the Military and the Police – but by party apparatchiki.
We had so much in assistance from the US, UK, Canada and the Netherlands. That is because we are a darling. Better for them to pmaper us to play the good boy and girl and receive support than bring in ISIS and the other Jihadists, namely, Houthi, Hamas and Hezbollahi to disrupt peace and trade and tourism.
So, the monies would always come, damn the drunk notes on corruption and bloated numbers in appointments that wastes our cash. Again, the monies would come, even of we fail to deal with galamsey decisively, while wasting all the time making noise in ParlIament justfor the sake of it.
My verdict: It is a tall order in a natin where we move one step forwards and two backwards because a poltical party and its top boys and girls will always strive to do an eight and get back to rest and invest and come back equipped financially to do another eight. It is a canker we have to leave with – particularly under a bogus Constitution – till God intervenes.
