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Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom - the right choice?
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I know we've been trying to stay away from taking sides in the political arena but I am kind of concerned about who will be leading Ghana after John Agyekum Kuffour. I have been pro-NPP since I can remember following politics, but after seeing them perform in 8 years, I am no more a fan of the party and I've switched to my Nkrumahist roots and sympathise with the CPP. I think the NPP has done a lot for Ghana's image, we are quite popular around the world, it's more friendly to foreigners, basically, we have developed a good reputation. Personally, from what I've seen I don't see the NPP focused enough on making life better for the average Ghanaian back home or building Ghanaian enterprises and that worries me. These were the ideals of Nkrumah and I believe the CPP is very aware of that.
Anyway, why Nduom? I have listened to him, and I have seen his work as the MP in the KEEA constituency. His track record speaks for himself, he's done the corporate thing and the public service thing and had a good amount of success. Moreso, I believe he is fine-tuned to thinking within his confines (his local community, family members, etc) and is concerned about the well-being of people all over Ghana. Find out about Coconut Grove Hotels and Gold Coast Securities, two of the enterprises he's involved in.
There is one concern though. Kwesi Nduom is seen as an NPP member, someone who joined a government ruled by a political party other than his. Some people would say that he did it in the service of the nation and not sticking to party lines but other schools of thought felt he should have been building his political party (outside of government instead). I am afraid this may worry him in his bid to win the CPP presidential candidate slot since the delegates may feel betrayed and it is rumoured that he supported the NPP's Kuffour instead of the CPP's Aggudey in the 2004 election.
What do you guys think? Was he wrong to serve the best interests of the nation instead of his political party?
What do you guys make of the CPP presidential race and do you think they have an outside chance of snatching power? Is Ghana doomed to a two-party state?
Comments
my friend you should not be
my friend you should not be burnt up for nothing just make one step and stick to it. if you continue jumping from here to there at the end of the day you are a looser have a stand and pronounce it to the public and sell out the party ideas and also participate and never pray partisan politics.
Kuffour and the NPP gov't
Kuffour and the NPP gov't have been a big disappointment especially when it comes to protecting our local industries (like poultry, rice, housing, textiles) and the number of Kuffour's foreign trips. How can you let chinese produce our Ghana@50 anniversary cloths when we have competent Ghanaian manufacturers who could have produced them? Also, we have too many ministers and special assistants. All Kuffour knows is to beg for money- how long are we going to beg? Does he know what sustainable development means? Flower, if we stick to (ie vote for) one party knowing very well that they have not performed or under performed, that party will take us for granted and we will be doing our country a huge disservice. I've also joined the CPP train. I think Paa Kwesi Nduom will be a good president. He knows what Ghana needs to move forward.
LET US INVEST IN OUR COUNTRY.LET'S BUILD OUR BUSINESSES & INDUSTRIES (SMALL,MEDIUM, MNC). LET'S PROTECT OUR NATURAL RESOURCES. LET'S SPEAK UP! LET'S CHALLENGE THE STATUS QUO.TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE GHANA A BETTER PLACE.YEN ARA Y'ASASE NE! GOD BLESS GHANA!
MAY THE BEST PERSON WIN I
MAY THE BEST PERSON WIN
I will doff my hat off to any leader who jumps ship just so he could serve his people. Some might see it as a weakness, or lack of keeping faith with one's party but hey why ever not.
If Ndoum thinks being in NPP means he is being marginalised and will never get to the fore to put his aspirations for Ghana into progress because of the two great giants NPP and NDC and their numerous aspirants, then he has great fore-sight. Afterall if you cant beat them, then you got to join them isnt it? Or in this case, you got to leave them huh?
As for NPP, we will be hypocrites if we do not give them some credit and cut them some slack. Angels they might not be, but i wouldnt call them the worst either. That will be like forgetting all the hardships Ghana went through in one puff of smoke. I KNOW THINGS ARE NOT QUITE HANKY DORE YET, but then again we have not had it so good in Ghanaian society for quite a long time till NPP came in. What i will condemn them for however, is being over ambitious. Moreso with a host of ministers all vying for their own 5 mins in the Presidential limelight and forgetting that there is still work to be done. And in that i agree and respect Presso for chastising them.
But let no one be fooled that a party's manifesto is a means to an end. The CPP of yester years might not be the CPP of today. Nkrumah was a different kettle of fish and even then some quarters still found him wanting. We cannot build a nation on ideals alone.
I want the best man for the job to win. I dont care what political party he hails from. And wether he jumps ship from NPP to NDC or CPP to NPP that wouldn't matter. A man or woman fit for the job, with the people's mandate is what Ghana needs. And may the majority carry the vote, for the voice of the people is the voice of God.
THE CRINGE FACTOR! WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THAT GOD MADE THREE WORLDS AND THAT I COME FROM THE THIRD WORLD. THE ISSUE OF RACE IS GEOGRAPHICAL AND NOT A STATUS SYMBOL AND NEITHER IS MY SKIN BLACK NOR YOURS WHITE.
Two party state? No thanks.
Two party state? No thanks. Unfortunately, throughout the 'democratic' world, the electorate seem indeed 'doomed' to a realistic 'democratic choice' of either one or another political party. Of course, the protagonists favour this; after all you know you've got a good probability of returning to power if you're the only opposition.
Ghana would benefit from a strong third party such as CPP to carry on the Nkrumahist tradition; despite the flaws, still the benchmark for pan-africanism in my opinion.
Does the voting system hinder a more plural political system? I think the 'westminster' style promotes the idea the two party state (which can't really be called democratic).
Perhaps the debate should be less about whether someone changes political party membership and more about what is the most appropriate political voting system, to maximise true democracy (twi equivalent to this greek word please?). Single transferable vote, anyone?
Politics, lies for the dumb.
Politics, lies for the dumb. I don't really care much for politics but on the subject here are my thoughts
Is Ghana doomed to a two party state?
- if there is no third party presence in the "presidential race" then obviously yes.
- "if you are the only opposition then you stand a good chance of returning to power" sums it up really.
More thoughts:
what makes you think voting for one or the other really makes a difference in your lives in the long run?
why don't governments encourage self sustenance? (where is the money in that you may ask...)
(by self sustenance I mean a better implemented version of http://www.ujammafarming.org)
why does the government still accept loans to import goods that are not needed?
why do they subsidise resellers of those imported goods? (how does not benefit the consumer?)
why is India (who gained her independence after Ghana) doing better than ghana?
why would you create life on only 1 in 7 planets in one solar system?
If people thought for themselves (in a large round forum) or nominated thinkers for debating the benefits of all actions taken for the good of a society then maybe we would be close to democracy. However we all have better things to do like shopping, working and thinking about ourselves so why bother.
Life self serving (or in general) is a waste of time and effort, but if you can waste time on someone else maybe they can take it easy.
THERE IS POWER IN THE
THERE IS POWER IN THE LEGISLATURE
There is a lot to be gained and pressure to be mounted if politicians from the less populous parties put in some hard work. Unfortunately, often times the focus is placed more on making it into the Executive inner Circle without the ground work.
Politicians in marginalised parties must first aim at winning seats at local elections, serving their communities and winning their favours. This is where their power lies if they are ever to make it to the top.
For example if CPP candidates proved themselves worthy at local and district levels, they will push back candidates from say NPP and NDC and gain more seats at local, district and parliamentary level. This in effect means that come the time for election, they have a vast representation in the house, the revolution has already started and there is a rapid flow of under-currents, coupled with and a staunch 'yetaawakyi' stance from electorates, which means no big wig from the reigning party nor an ever hopeful opposition candidate can sway this power of the vote. Add a culmination of such electoral attitudes from districts and councils all over the country and voters preferences for these people, and what you get is an electoral land slide where the under dogs snatch the Presidency from under the noses of a shocked political party or parties who thought they were favourites to win.
Local government is where the power is; the grass roots are where the majority lie. Just ask Jerry Rawlings and Konadu Agyeman. They knew where their bread was buttered in the villages and districts and didnt focus too much on the savvy city folk. If only budding politicians will learn this strategy, the days of surety that elections are just between the reigning party and opposition will soon become a myth.
THE CRINGE FACTOR! WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THAT GOD MADE THREE WORLDS AND THAT I COME FROM THE THIRD WORLD. THE ISSUE OF RACE IS GEOGRAPHICAL AND NOT A STATUS SYMBOL AND NEITHER IS MY SKIN BLACK NOR YOURS WHITE.
Omanba, I was not trying to
Omanba, I was not trying to discredit the work of the NPP, they have done a lot, frankly, more than the NDC as well.
The way I see it though, I just feel Mr. Nduom is the best man for the job. People are aware that the CPP is not a strong party at present, with very little presence on the ground and in many constituencies. They must address that, the grassroots participation and am afraid even if they had the youth backing them, a la the CYO in Nkrumah's days, it may not be enough.
I don't really mind a two-party state if they are not so different in philosophy and ideology.
While we are at it, what do we even want in a leader? Can we translate success in public administration or private business into leading a nation and managing good policies into fruition?
the destiny of a nation at any given time depends on the opinions and contributions of its young men and women.
Paa Kwesi Nduom won!
I knew he would :-)
Hurdle one has been crossed
Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom is the candidate for the CPP in the 2008 election.
The NPP is up next
Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom has won the contest and has been declared the flag bearer of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) for election 2008.
In a keenly contested election clouded by allegations and counter allegations of monetary influence and impropriety at the Party’s Delegates’ Congress which took place at the Great Hall of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi over three days from Friday 14th to Monday 17th December, 2007, Dr. Nduom came up tops with a wide margin of votes.
http://www.myjoyonline.com/politics/200712/11439.asp
Well, the CPP had their congress at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), good karma anybody?
the destiny of a nation at any given time depends on the opinions and contributions of its young men and women.
Dr. Nduom on CITI FM
I listened to Bernard Avle interview Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom on CITI FM's Breakfast show and came away with a few things
Interesting facts about Dr. Paa Kwesi Nduom
Dr. Nduom was the entertainment prefect, played in a band called the Rolets (together with Totobi Quakyi playing the bass guitar and sang) at St. Augustine's College. He was also the captain of the basketball team and goalie of the school hockey team.
His father was a foot soldier in the CPP with Kwame Nkrumah. He also wanted him to school in Ghana because he felt the need to go through the system, etc
Some quotables - he calls politics the art of the possible and lives by three principles - faith, family values, public service
His (CPP's) objective in everything is to give the advantage to the Ghanaian.
He signed off with this - "when u go to the villages, all the old people know about us, they are showing the CPP party cards. All of Nkrumah's ministers, their children and grandchildren know this is something they can support.
u will see what happens in 2008, it will be exciting"
He's bringing a campaign of ideas, solutions with a sense of urgency, a campaign to fight poverty
the destiny of a nation at any given time depends on the opinions and contributions of its young men and women.