Opinions of Tuesday, 6 April 2021

Columnist: Yaw Solomon and Terry Afram-Kumi

Tribal politics of Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu should not be entertained

Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, Majority Leader

How many times have you been an MP? Are there not qualified candidates in your constituency that can also be MP's?

When you point a finger at someone, remember the remaining are pointing at you.

Are there not many tribes in your constituency?

Since when has changing tribes in leadership become a measure of who leads a nation?

This is why up to date, we are still struggling as a country to get an official language.

Are you saying we should change the capital city of Ghana also on rotational grounds?

Whilst the party’s national executives embarked on a nationwide engagement with the grassroots, they urged them to stay away from 2024 flagbearer race projections.

The likes of Hon. Osei Kyei-Mensah Bonsu are on a daily basis demonstrating that; what the national leadership of the party has said should be treated with a pinch of salt.

The focus of the government now should be on how the country should be developed in line with the vision of President Nana Addo.

It’s the Presidents vision that all regions and tribes will experience meaningful development within this government. Let’s not derail the President new term of just four months by engaging in tribal politics.

Proportionally, to whom much is given, much is expected.

If one Region alone can erase nine other regions by virtue of total votes cast and also enable the party to win a one-touch victory, why try to negate this strategic influence of a region.

The grassroots of our great party have suffered immensely because of neglect shown them by party leaders and members of government and parliamentarians.
It should be the ultimate aim of the leadership of the government and party to seek to empower the grassroots by given them jobs that will translate into cash into their pockets.

The party faithful, who have toiled with their sweat and blood to help win power should be our concern and not trying to play one tribe against another.

It’s the various tribes combined, Ga’s, Ewes, Akan’s, Fante’s, Dagomba’s, Mamprusi’s Gonja’s and to mention a few, whose combined forces and selfless dedication to the cause of the party since its inception in 1992 has won Us four general elections.

Tribal politics because of cabinet members personal ambitions has no place in the affairs of our great party the NPP.

How can you be enjoying monopoly and asking someone to stop doing the same? I just pray you haven't really said "Bringing an Akan after President Akufo Addo is unwise" Else be ready to vacate your post after this government.

People with this mentality are those who abandoned their own for others. He will prefer we choose the English language over "Twi" because there are other languages. Is "Twi" not the most largely spoken language in Ghana? But for the likes of this man, we are happy of using a borrowed language as a means of communicating officially.

The majority leader should stop these tribal politics because it has the ability to erode the gains the NPP has made in the Ashanti region which is the party’s “world bank”.

Is Osei Kyei-Mensha-Bonsu trying to cause damage to the Ashanti votes just because of his personal ambitions to be a running mate to a particular potential candidate?

The current disposition of the likes Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, are just running all over the place to fulfil the prophecy of Hon. Kennedy Adjapong.

The vocal MP for Assin North, has said the NPP risks losing power in 2024 by such schemes to impose candidates on the grassroots of the party.
Hon. Kennedy Adjapong, further added that “No one will choose a candidate for us”.

No not even Hon Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu.

Hon Kennedy was recently heard again saying "President Akufo-Addo is like a tree without roots". If three months into his second bid as a president, the entire presidency, party leadership, and key personalities are busily marketing their own political ambition, then he is doom. Hon Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu forgot just few weeks ago he came out speaking about his innocence of a certain car branding that has to do with his being a running mate to Dr Alhaji Mahamud Bawumia the current vice president.

If the NDC are those he used as his reference of choosing a flag bearer, have they ever chosen a non-Christian as their Flagbearer? Is it not simply because they believe Christians are about 70% of our population? There are many factors that contributed to the struggling majority in parliament today. You are entitled to just a vote, but contributed to the number of skirt and blouse type of voting in 2020 general elections.

Hon Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, must not forget that there are other people in the NPP, yet he has been both minority and majority leader and yet didn’t mention that he should be rotated. Even more so when our fortunes in parliament has been fantastically eroded.

Since 2016, the likes of Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu who have solely been about their selfish ambitions as against the vision of President Akufo-Addo has led the NPP party to its slippery defeat in the parliamentary race.
It seems they haven’t heeded to the lessons and have doubled up by completely leaving the jobs the party have entrusted to them.

The likes of Osei Kyei-Mensha-Bonsu have been busily forming fans clubs, pasting posters and branding cars to achieve these personal ambitions, even if it’s distractive and destructive to successful completion of the mandate of the President's second term.

The 2020 elections and the NPP’s party’s Intensive Care Position (ICU) position in parliament is a clarion call for fresh, bold and experienced leadership.

If you care to know, you are a majority leader by virtue of long service and that is not to say you are the repository of all wisdom.

The fragile situation in the 8th parliament is our prima facie evidence.

When people work hard to gain power, they again work hard to lose it, that should not be the story of the NPP.

From a difference of 63 seats in 2016 to a one-seat majority should not be a comfortable place to throw tribal jabs.

What 63 seats lost margin should rather encourage us to do is to win back the disgruntled and disappointed grassroots who need jobs.

In fact, this should be the main agenda of the current party leadership and some government leaders and not trying to impose a particular candidate on the party for 2024.

The NPP party before the 2020 general elections held a majority of 63 seats over the NDC's.

Due to personal ambitions directing the likes of Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu not the party’s interests we lost virtually all our lead as a majority in parliament and even had to rely on a sacked member of the same party to give us a solitary one (1) seat victory.

There is this popular saying "An antelope that has been destined to die, doesn't hear Hunter's whistle". Else an opponent(NDC) will not be a reference for choosing a candidate.

Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu must come again, and his focus must not
be that he wants to force a particular candidate down the throats of the NPP party grassroots.

The discerning grassroots who are kingmakers of the party are too wise to be taken for granted for the second time.