The War of Calendars

A quiet political drama is playing itself out on the streets of Accra. There are no fights, no shouts, no sloganeering. So far, it is an activity being pursued by youngsters and involves what on the surface is just a simple commercial activity: the sale of 2002 calendars!

The calendars are one-page A3 sized portraits of President Kufuor and ex-Flt. Lt. Rawlings. When they started appearing on the streets of Accra just over a month ago, they seemed benign enough but are now attracting more than a passing or buying interest!

It is not unusual for printers to print and put out on sale calendars or posters of well-known faces in sports, show business, or politics. Such posters or calendars, depending on their popularity can rake in handsome figures for the printer, which no doubt these two calendars are doing.

These two calendars have taken a decidedly partisan flavour on the quiet, since they are normally held up in pairs. The Accra Mail has received reports on how NPP and NDC supporters react when the calendars are held up to them. Reactions range from controlled disinterest to disdain.

Some motorists have been known to hiss at vendors who hold up the "wrong" face, "fereho ko", meaning get lost! It's come to that.

A retired Ghana Navy officer last week called the offices of The Accra Mail to report what he said was a disturbing sign because at one particular spot, the Rawlings calendar had outsold the Kufuor calendar. Obviously an NPP supporter, he told The Accra Mail to find out "what's gone wrong?" This story actually took off after his call.

When The Accra Mail decided to find out more, it was clear that the calendars might not be innocent after all! Another person said to The Accra Mail that even though he had no use for so many calendars, "I bought five of the president's [Kufuor] calendar." Asked why he would purchase five calendars if he had no use for all five, his response was equally revealing, "Do you think we read all the private papers we buy? It's a way of showing our support for the good work you people are doing."

More calendars with different designs would no doubt hit the streets in the coming weeks, but in the current configuration, the absence of Professor Mills raises interesting questions. It was the Professor who ran against President Kufuor in Election 2000. It is surprising that his face has been left out. In a way, it goes to show that Professor Mills was not quite there in people's perceptions of who the NDC stands for. A purchaser of a Rawlings calendar when questioned, simply answered, "he is still my man."

The NDC goes to congress in December. What to do with Rawlings may be their biggest bugbear. The defeat of Ortega (a Rawlings role model) in Nicaragua is said to have been a blow to Rawlings. A win for Ortega would have rekindled his hopes of a come back of sorts, though the constitution debars him.

The calendars themselves prove a point that is usually missed by people when debating the freedom of expression. It has often been thought that the freedom of expression applies only to journalists. It is a freedom that cuts across because the same provisions in the constitution that give journalists their legitimacy also protect the calendars. The calendars are subject equally to the same strictures which journalists face when they err in the discharge of their duties. They fall in the overall realm of media practice.

As we continue to ponder the politics of calendars, the question that is still begging for an answer is whether the NDC has not put all its eggs in one basket - the basket called Jeremiah John Rawlings.