Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin has predicted, the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) could soon implode with in-fighting now that it has won political power.
“very soon they ([PP] will start fighting among themselves,” the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC’s) most experienced Parliamentarian stated, Thursday. He was addressing party faithful at the NDC Headquarters as part of activities marking 25th Anniversary celebrations of the NDC.
The highly-decorated politician’s prediction came at the tail-end of his analysis of the NDC’s recent misfortunes in the 2016 general elections which saw President John Mahama denied a second term, making him a historic one-term president.
A parliamentary majority was wiped off in what is described as its weakest performance since the party was founded by former President Jerry John Rawlings.
The forme Minister suggested the party has historically been on the bad side of the media because it left that space to the opposition NPP when it first won power in 1992.
“We were depending on the state media. NPP decided to invest in the private media. They still take care of the media than NDC even when we were in power,” he said.
He expressed disappointment at how the NPP began with only 64 MPs in 1997 and has now become a majority with a stranglehold on the current parliament, commanding 169 seats out of 275.
He said the NDC deserves better because “to be frank it’s the only national party” in Ghana.
Continuing his analysis based on the strength, weakness, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of the two parties, the former Minister, former Minority and Majority Leader said, while the NPP may boast of professionals, the NDC has a numerical power of the ordinary people.
“They have a few lawyers who are just good at writing and talking. But we have the men and women more than them.”
Apart from having a national character, he said to the credit of the NDC, the party also has a superior ideology of social democracy.
Alban Bagbin explained UNDP reports have always vindicated social democratic economies because, they are “always on top” of human development indices like life expectancy.
“That is the indication of where we should go,democratic philosophy” he said, urging the country shdemocratic philosophy.
According to him, Western countries like the UK as well as the US, are struggling to meet the socio-economic needs of their people because the liberal ideology is “rat race” to survive.
Spotting what he believes to be a strength, the NDC’s most experienced MP observed, the NDC has service-oriented members while the NPP has money.
“They belong to money we belong to service”, he said.
By a service-orientation he meant in the NDC, supporters don’t look up to leadership for money to run the party they offer money to leaders at various levels.
But he complained this trait may no longer be exclusive to the NDC because NPP in recent times is doing better at creating a political base that contributes financially to the party.
He said NPP supporters are paying ?10 to register to become members while in the NDC “people are looking for the party to bring money”.
The man believed to be harbouring presidential ambitions rallied the party to unite irrespective of differences.
“It is now time for us to start and build a charter”, he charged.
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