The June fourth uprising restored Ghana’s image ion 1979

Thirty eight years ago, a flame was ignited in this country. The flame shed light into some dark corners of our National Life. This light enabled us to see the magnitude of the task ahead, that of empowering the people of this dear nation of ours, to create a truly participatory democracy and forge ahead with national development the period leading to the events of June 4th 1979 could best be described as a ‘National Nightmare’.

The political system had been compromised. National Defense Institutions were in total disgrace. National morality had been replaced by a culture of ‘each one for himself or herself,’ Summed up in the jargons of the time ‘Kalabule’. The country’s economy was in shambles. The people were in despair, but at the same time, very angry and ready to strike at their perceived Oppressors and Tormentors. My fellow Comrade, and former leader of the two Revolutions Flt. Lt. J.J. Rawlings, The AFRC and the PNDC governments were the products of those times.

We set ourselves a National Agenda to change the political and electoral system from one of Elitism and Power based on wealth to that of grassroots political participation and representation by setting up the District Assemblies in 1987, which was a milestone in our revolutionary journey which has today enabled hundreds of thousands of men and women to play a real part in the decision making process that affect our lives.

We set to work to restore the moral fiber of the Ghanaian society and to replace the culture of individual Greed with that of Probity and Accountability, the absence of which cost the NDC the 2016 general elections. We also Restored the social, economic and legal justice for the ordinary people of this country. The PNDC government took bold measures to ensure real growth in productivity and to provide concrete development in the areas of education, health, housing, water, agriculture, electricity, roads and telecommunications from a situation where the Akosombo Electricity grid did not go beyong Kumasi.

Today, every Regional and District capital is connected to the National Grid at Akosombo which was extended to Paga in the Upper East Region and even beyond the borders of Ghana. We created investment and employment opportunities, though admittedly which was not enough for the growing numbers of employable youth. We established the Public Tribunals in which the POOR MAN’S access to justice was Equal to that of the Rich and Powerful but which has now been scrapped with the coming of the fourth Republic in 1992.

It is unpleasant fact that there are some people in our own ranks who have not lived up to our principles and expectations and who have become obsessed with their own importance to the detriment of their duty to the people they serve from 2009-2016 and the people voted massively against the NDC in disgust and thereby, giving our opponents in the NPP the advantage but, we cannot respect those who resort to lies, and vicious rumours, or who are ready to plunge the country into confusion in pursuit of their selfish ambitions.

We cannot allow the revolutionary spirit and nationalism upon which our party was established to be altered or tainted once again by those whose first consideration is their personal gain.

People listen to a great deal of prejudiced talk and then form a negative view of many innocent people in this country because they are always too quick to judge. We need to attract many more noblemen and women to take over the politics of this country. But to do so, we must insist first and foremost on Fairness, Justice and Transparency in our party which was completely ABSENT in the NDC and we lost the election in 2016.

We must lead by example so that the rank and file will willingly take up and further the principles on which the NDC was founded. The Unity of the party and internal harmony is extremely important. We must overcome the tendency to highlight Artificial Ethnic and other divisions in order to solidify the unity of purpose upon which we stand as a formidable political party. We must let the Youth know this important History since they form 70% of the country’s population. On this note, May God bless everybody. Keep your fingers crossed, I shall return with more fire.