Editorial: Ghana must get over Rawlings

Too often, it seems, Rawlings – the self-proclaimed saviour of this country – sees no nation but only NPP and NDC – the former to be destroyed at any cost, even the nation itself.

For any true statesman, of course, patriotism is at the heart of their belief. For all their solid, if controversial policies, Thatcherism and Reaganism had at their very core an unshakable love of country which informed all other decisions. And after the end of long terms, both leaders retreated from politics enough to let their successors make their successes, and failures, themselves.

But what is Rawlingsism, if not just provocative entertainment? And what is his contribution to Ghana now – besides trying to bring down a democratically-elected government, in a democratic system he himself boasts of setting up? Rawlings says Ghana is ripe for revolution. Decades of coup d’etats across Africa, years of upheaval and developmental stagnation, have surely taught the people of Ghana that another overthrow is not the way forward. The continuing calls and threats of a now lone voice for a coup in Ghana nonetheless will hopefully teach both us and him – once and for all – that we have left Rawlings behind.

After the break-up of any long relationship there is always complex emotions – however right, however needed the end, it is always difficult to make a clean break.

By the end of Rawlings’ 19-year period of rule in Ghana, Ghanaians were ready for the split – away from the leader, and away from his party. The period of transition from his National Democratic Congress government to the Kufuor-led New Patriotic Party leadership was not always smooth and not always easy – but the majority consensus was that it was for the best. And in the last six years, Ghana has moved on: away from the somewhat rocky, sometimes overbearing relationship with a former dictator and real character in African politics to a more steady, mature and reliable NPP governmental hand. Even Rawlings’ own party has struggled to free themselves a little from the stranglehold grip he for so long exerted over the NDC. The Statesman is reliably informed that Rawlings ‘ordered’ Prof Mills to incite NDC supporters to the streets to protest the results of the 2004 elections, for example. Although sporadically involved with demonstrations and wahala protests, the opposition party decided that democratic national elections, re-introduced by the former NDC leader himself, were not events to be sabotaged too much – the stability of the country – was at stake.

Rawlings himself seems yet to make such mature judgement, however; and yet to get over his break-up with the people of Ghana. Today, The Statesman has this to say to him: JJ, we have moved on – and now so must you.

As a rule, this newspaper tries to avoid the former Ghanaian military leader and president: his cheap calls for publicity, repetitive scare-mongering and routine accusations of the governing party neither helpful nor particularly relevant to the work of development in this country and the formation of a national identity and consensus.

His latest antics, however, can not be ignored: but must be seen by all Ghanaians, in his party and without, as a concerning reminder of the level of destruction and chaos that could still be wreaked by a former leader still hung-up on the influence he has lost.

The allegations made by the current president, John Agyekum Kufuor, at Offinso on Sunday must be regarded with some level of gravity, if indeed they prove to be serious. It is no light claim to say that your predecessor, a successful coup-ist two times over, is seeking funds from a foreign government to take over the country once again.

And the retorts made by Rawlings have been fuel on the fire, whether he intended to corroborate Kufuor’s claims or not. Whatever the truth of the allegations, the former president’s love for incendiary remarks and sensationalism probably prevented him from acting otherwise. Speaking at South Bank University in London, UK this week, Rawlings’ direct implication of the outgoing United Nations Security General, Ghana’s Kofi Annan, must also be regarded seriously, although The Statesman cautions against Rawlings own habit of letting the truth get in the way of a good story. Today, we call upon Mr Annan to issue a statement putting forward his case.

We must give these allegations appropriate attention, but we must also be wary of Rawlings’ ongoing, destructive attempts to toy with the heart of a Ghanaian people he long ago lost. To use an audience of UK university students to reiterate claims of electoral fraud – a long-worn-out refrain – and to warn the world of a coup in Ghana, seems to be just another desperate grab for headlines. Rawlings is an entertainer; increasingly a clown – and like many jesters, there is something seriously sinister about his intentions. The ranting of the former Flight Lieutenant at his Accra press conference yesterday, and broadcast on radio stations in the capital, were almost nonsensical at times: shifting from one tired threat to another. Conditions are ripe for another coup, he has said – to an audience of Ghanaians living for the first time in decades in a stable country with a stable economy, looking forward to further growth.

Yet for six years since the end of his presidency, we have continued to let this man dominate our airwaves, our front pages: almost as if Ghanaians, like the man himself, are not quite over the relationship; as if we, too, believe his propaganda cries, that he is the only one who has a monopoly on governing Ghana, and ‘wisdom’ to offer others.

Arguably, Rawlings remains Ghana’s most experienced statesman: our military ruler for 11 years, and elected leader another eight years after that. Arguably, too, that despite his firm, often repressive leadership style – his signaling left but turning right, his betrayal of the populist swell on which he was able to seize power – Rawlings, inspite of his own express despise of liberal democracy, brought back the stability which he took away, and put Ghana back on track to progress and economic development.

False, however, the perception he continues to peddle: that Ghana began and ended with his presidency, that Ghana and its politics cannot move on without him.

Still, Rawlings insists on his love for Ghana, whilst his actions suggest a love for a lost power and nothing more, as he pro-actively seeks to destroy the positive name Ghana is making for itself under leadership other than his. Why should he complain, for example, when international news agencies such as the BBC, CNN, Reuters fail to pick up on our shameful drugs scandal, and embarrass us still more? Would he rather see Kufuor fall than Ghana rise out of the tired image of a war- and crime-riddled, corrupt Africa which still taints western coverage of the continent?

We are fast growing up as a nation, JJ, join us if you can.