Is Osafo-Maafo worthy of the NPP leadership?

Now the dice is almost cast. All the dust is beginning to settle down, and people are now beginning to forge another line of thinking. The thinking of course involves one important issue as far as politics and for that matter 2008 presidential and parliamentary elections are concerned. Who leads which party, and which leadership will win the hearts of politically passionate Ghanaians? These are some of the questions that will matter to Ghanaians in the coming days. The euphoria will be such that even those of us in the society, who hardly find a square meal a day will totally forget about our miseries and abject poverty, (of which 60% are caused by the politicians, their decisions and the actions they take), and walk barefooted to cheer the politicians to victory. Some of us will perish in the political campaign process; others too would be maimed and will soon be forgotten by the people they supported, not forgetting those who will pay the ultimate price of death. Much as we do not hope for such unfortunate incidents, we must also not forget they are inevitable in every political process. We can only minimise their occurrence.

The enthusiasms surrounding the coming electioneering process are all because we want somebody who can live up to the challenges of modern Ghana . Someone whose vision, direction and sense of leadership innovation can bring out the best of the numerous talents of Ghanaians for effective productivity! Finally, our cry will be that God will deliver a special Moses who epitomizes the identity of Ghanaians, and who has the knowledge and capacity to come out with socio-economic policies and programmes worthy for human development.

For the NPP, the election of the presidential candidate is going to be very hectic because of some erroneous impression that the party and its government has done well that, even "anybody at all" in the 'Eshi' colours with the elephant symbol can win the party another election. No wonder all sorts of "material beings" are surfacing to contest. I know some religious people will say "let them all grow together till harvest time" where it will be easy to separate the weed from the grain. But if we did not pray for God's guidance and intervention it is possible some weed will be mistaken for good grain and the consequences only the poor posterity can tell how irresponsible their older generations have been.

That said and done, the key question is, so who should lead NPP then? My answer rests on three conditions. I assume that we are living in a fair and responsible society which seeks the best for her citizens (if that really existed). Secondly, that fair society acknowledges that its citizens for leadership be measured by their worth and output to the general society at large, and finally the citizen(s) have the capacity to initiate visionary policies and programmes for the well-being of the masses, and also has what it takes to unite the nation irrespective of our diverse interests and agenda should the leadership falls (their) his/her way.

Hence under these conditions, and if all things are equal and possible, is Osafo-Maafo worthy to be the candidate for NPP and ultimately the President of Ghana? To get the best out of this question let’s look at who Osafo-Maafo is. Yaw Osafo-Maafo, a.k.a Yaw Bronya (as he was born on 24th December some 64 years ago) by the elders of his Ekoona family at Awisa, OY by his nephews, cousins and nieces, as well as young people from his Awisa community, Nana by his distant cousins and party supporters, Ohene by his wife Anna, Sam or Yaw by classmates, "Na who caused am?" or HIPC minister by NDC admirers, and more recently Oseedeyo by Ghanaians both party members and the opposition especially the media guys and football loving Ghanaians, is a blend of traditional ideas and modern innovation.

Traditionally, the name Osafo is translated to mean Kantanka which connotes some elements of leadership in it. And interestingly too most of the names he had so far acquired have some elements of leadership and achievements in it which he has lived up to. Not only does he provide leadership for others to perform to his credit, he actively participates in the workings of the substantive issues whose achievement are paramount under his jurisdiction. He works himself out to achieve results, and one important trait of his leadership style is co-opting people he believes can deliver into his management strategy and supports them with trust and confidence.

OY has the style of bringing innovations from within. He works through the available resources both human and materials at his disposal to bring the best out of them, as according to him he believes every human being is capable to perform to the highest level. He believes what at times is needed is an innovative leader who can give the people the chance to be at their best and offer their best output. And this he does through all forms of communication at times cracking of jokes which may not be true, but a way to bridge the top-down gap in management. He is somebody who is ready to work with anyone irrespective of whom you are or where you come from. His only measure is one’s ability and capacity to perform with dignity of service to the larger society. He is neither an introvert nor an extrovert, as he exhibit both traits effectively depending on the situation. His confidence to perform to satisfaction is par excellence. This makes him stable and never worried about the political price he pays.

One thing that drives Osafo-Maafo is his believe to get another chance better than what he just done away with to prove his worth. Being the longest MD in the history of any bank in Ghana, I remember in 1992 after he was sacked from NIB, he told some members of the Ekoona family that he is not finished yet, and that he will be of service sooner than later to prove his worth. In paraphrasing what he said: "I will soon be needed to serve and prove my worth and I don't intend to prove any critics wrong." Less than a year in April 1993 he was made Nkosohene of Akyem Oda traditional area. Later on I got to know that the then Chief needed him to represent the Oda Constituency in 1996 parliamentary elections. So he used the nkosohene to keep him in Oda before anybody or organization comes for him. Lo and behold in 1996 Nana Agyeman Attafuah IV together with some key people in the area asked Osafo-Maafo to contest for the NPP parliamentary slot. The end result Ghanaians are the witnesses.

But why is Osafo-Maafo, in spite of his results oriented life, be subjected to two dismissals even by his own party government? Some may ask. Well, I will say he is the type who does not fight for positions and hates creating blocks of factions within one big family. Whilst some party leaders creates empires around themselves, some to the extent of surrounding themselves with security and other hardcore network, he is a lone ranger who believes the best empire any one can get to lead is God's guidance. The only time he has come close to personal security is during his ministerial era. He is not a sycophant, bootlicker, bigotry, hypocrite nor autocrat. He forbids envying colleagues and any human being, and is never afraid of people's image. He believes in allowing and supporting people how to fish. That is why he detests from making promises in his career. His only promise is hardwork, responsibility and accountability.

He is the type who commands greater respect and support from even the corridors of the NDC/CPP and the independent people, without comprising on what he believes is the substantive issue as far as the best interest of his responsibility is concerned. He knows when to muscle out and when to soften down to get the best out of a situation. He is always ready to accept responsibility of his actions and does not waiver from fundamental ethics of good democracy. He is a continuous learner who always comes up with new ideas on issues of policies. He sets agenda and makes sure it is within human and institutional limits. He does not work to please people, but he thinks about the collective interest and the impact his work have on larger society.

I had the chance to casually meet hon. Bagbin in the presence of OY. After brief introduction hon. Bagbin noted he was not happy when he [OY] was reshuffled. His reason was that he is a real policy man who learns to set substantive policy agenda at the highest level, and gets it communicated to all those having responsibility with the achievement of the policy. He continued that OY does not play politics or self centred interest with issues of national policy. He noted that Ghana is at such a crucial stage that we cannot afford to do away with the caliber of Osafo-Maafo, adding that among the defective decisions of the government, the reshuffling of Osafo-Maafo primes among the key ones. He asked “who in his right frame of mind will sack Osafo-Maafo without any obvious justification? He concluded that if the NDC were to vote for the NPP leadership then Osafo-Maafo will be the obvious choice, as according to him he is someone they [the NDC] can conveniently work with.

Osafo-Maafo does not believe in the politics of surrounding himself with families and friends, as has been the trademark of many Ghanaian politicians. He believes in the right people with the right knowledge for the work. That is why he was able to bring two banking institutions from the doldrums to command high reputation in the financial sector. While he introduced many innovative challenges in the banking sector for instance the Redco project, commercial/personal/foreign banking in BHC, he never done away with the traditionally core businesses. Ghanaians will attest to the high reputation that BHC enjoyed under his administration. He was also very instrumental in the establishment of Donewell Insurance and the restructuring of South Akim Manufacturing.

His reign at NIB we need not recount here. And as minority spokesperson on trade and industry his contributions were simply not sugar coated for political expediency but those that had the national interest at heart. No wonder Prof Mills expressed his heartfelt interest in welcoming him and Addo Kufuor as some people he will love to work with had he won the 2000 elections.

OY was able to make a huge impact as Minister of Finance and Education during the periods he was there. Even how he made gains on unpopular policies like HIPC marvels his critics. He knew what he was after and effectively work through it to achieve the needed results. Even though he was not at post when the much tooted millennium challenge account was signed for, nobody can take the credit from him for justifying Ghana ’s eligibility on May 6, 2004 as a result of prudent macro policies he committed to, and which met the MCA criteria. When it comes to defending policies that justify bringing in financial resources, or embarking on programmes whose impact meet the aspirations of the majority Oseedeyo is best among equals. As a friend of mine said, “as for this Osafo-Maafo, he took us to HIPC with pain, but he was able to give us a taste of world cup.”

Let’s remind ourselves when Dr Nyaho Tamakloe was muscling out against the GFA. Osafo-Maafo did not minced words for the sake of political expediency and commented on the issue. It did not go well with Dr Tamakloe who, he has very good terms with, but at the end of the day he [OY] prioritized national interest over personal and political friendship and said it as it is. What happened? A taste of world cup! That issue could have been a thorny one for the progress of the GFA and the Black Stars, and that could have cost us the chance of qualifying for the world cup. That is the character of Yaw Bronya.

Has he messed up at all politically? Yes. As immortal being he is prone to mistakes. As President Nixon said “…mistakes yes, but for personal gains no.” We all know he admitted making mistakes in the IFC loan agreement popularly known as the barbering loan agreement. Also, the recent court ruling against the Ministry of Education in the award of book publishing contract without due process of tender means that Oseedeyo was wrong in that decision as a minister.

But on the whole he has justified beyond all reasonable doubts that he is worthy to lead Ghana . He is one of the few political elements who have long history of local career both as a student and as a worker. He has the local knowledge and experience to deal with issues. Internationally too, he ranks among the finest servants of people. That’s what Oseedeyo Yaw Bronya OY HIPC Na Who Caused Am Osafo-Maafo represents. A character that sister countries wished he is their citizen.

But are you prepared to be the President of Ghana? "Emphatically yes. I know myself and what I can positively offer. There is no need wasting time and resources of myself and that of the people of Ghana if I knew I am not up to the task. The challenge is huge but it is not unsurmmountable. I am capable, and very willing to rise up to it. With the support of everyone we can make a huge difference for ourselves," he stressed.

It is my believe the media will challenge presidential candidates on substantive issues on socio-economic policies and from there we will see the real Omaafo Saafo as Mr Chuck man Kofi Wayo used to call him.

And on this note I say welcome Oseedeyo. You are more than worthy to be the NPP Presidential candidate, and eventual winner in 2008 as the President of our Motherland.