I'm not in bed with govt - Baako

“No! I am not in bed with the government of the day,” says Kweku Baako Jnr. The 1999 Journalist of the Year better known for his contribution as a social commentator on radio and TV says he does not speak for government on every issue.

"In principle, I have been offering critical support to the NPP administration since 2001 because we (some NPP officials and myself) have been in the trenches to reject PNDC for 11 good years. We have fought this battle which has created a bond between us. I am not ashamed of this!" he added.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) he claims, is a quasi-military government whose first four years was a hangover from PNDC.

He entertains the conviction that he has the legitimate right not to allow NDC to return to power but if the good people of Ghana want them to, he cannot over-rule their will.

Kweku Baako talks fondly about the CPP. "I am a CPP, born into the Nkrumaist political family. However, in terms of consolidating Ghana's fledging democracy, the NPP government is doing a lot,” he said.

“For now, the immediate alternative to NPP is NDC. This does not mean that I have abandoned my love for CPP. Whatever I can do to help CPP grow, I will not hesitate to do it. I am a realist and a pragmatist who is being candid," he emphasised.

Kweku Baako indicated that his current posture (support for NPP) is not permanent.

Asked if he is a member of Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom's campaign team, Kweku Baako said an emphatic 'no'.

"I want to concentrate more on my media practice and build a media empire comprising a newspaper, radio and television stations whilst I continue to do research for local and international organisations."

"My father left us a wealth of information in the form of books and articles; wealth in terms of information and experience. He always told us, "You don't do politics without research and intelligence. This is the reason why research is part of me."

In his opinion, CPP is the greatest political tradition in Ghanaian politics but realistically, he cannot imagine a CPP victory in 2008, admitting however that he will be surprised if an Nduom-Ied CPP does not perform better than all CPP experiences.

CPP, he said, is more focused, more vibrant and attractive than ever before, saying he admired Dr Nduom's courage.

He indicated that together with others in CPP, they agreed to increase their parliamentary presence as this is critical to the growth of the party. However, it appears this has been revised.

He minces no words about it. "I have nothing against that but I feel that the way forward for CPP to grow is through increasing our presence in Parliament. I respect Dr Nduom a lot. He was the best minister in Kufuor's government."