Why NDC needs Elvis Afriyie Ankrah as General Secretary

Leadership is everything. It has the power to turn an army of sheep into a force that could defeat an army of lions. This simply means a group is as effective as the one leading it. The kind of energy the NDC needs before and during the 2024 elections, must flow from the top hierarchy. That is the only way the party will be able to wrestle power from the Nana Addo-led government, whose only focus is to win the 2024 elections regardless of the unbearable hardship they have brought upon the citizenry. This is why the party must take its time to elect the right person; an energetic and competent person, versatile and agile enough to man the office of the General Secretary. The office of the General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is a creation of Article 26 of the Party’s Constitution. The same article spells out the responsibilities of the General Secretary as follows; i) the administration of the Party Secretariat and Party employees, ii) the coordination of Party organization and campaign, and iii) Secretary to the National Congress. The national executive elections will be next after the Party’s regional elections are held and it is public knowledge that the current General Secretary, Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, is lacing his boots to compete for the Chairmanship of the Party. This means the office of the General Secretary will be manned by a new person. So far, 3 names are making waves as contenders for the position; the current Director of Elections for the Party, Mr. Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, the Deputy General Secretary of the Party, Dr. Peter Otokunor, and former MP for Ketu South, Mr. Fiifi Fiavi Kwetey. Without a shred of doubt, these three personalities are well-known among the rank and file of the Party. They have made various contributions to the Party at different levels. Among the three, however, the writer believes the NDC will be better served by electing Mr. Elvis Afriyie Ankrah as its General Secretary because of the following reasons: There is a dossier of information on the political life of Mr. Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, starting from his days as the President of the Students Representative Council of the University of Ghana, to the Director of Elections for the NDC currently. However, for this write-up, I will focus on key contributions to the Party at the national level . First of all, when it comes to the office of the General Secretary, Mr. Ankrah is no novice. In 2005, he was elected as the Deputy General Secretary of the NDC and was put in charge of operations. The NDC won the 2008 elections despite the heavy rigging machinery of the NPP due to his contributions on issues regarding electoral strategy and matters of security. In 2012, Mr. Elvis Afriyie Ankrah was again appointed as the campaign coordinator of the NDC. Aside from his numerous contributions in this role, He brought so much energy to the campaign at the time. It was during this campaign that a lot more Ghanaians got to know the man Afriyie Ankrah; he was always that thundering voice that could shout the name ‘Mahama’ rhythmically until the entire gathering was charged with energy. The NDC won the elections once again. In 2016 however, he was not on the national campaign trail. He focused his energies on one of his beloved constituencies and made sure the Seat was delivered for the NDC. In 2019, Mr. Ankrah was appointed as the Director of Elections for the Party; a position he still holds. His team discovered the printing of over one million ballot papers at an unauthorized printing house. He played this role so well that for the first time in the history of the Fourth Republic, we had a hung Parliament while the one million votes between the NDC and the NPP from the previous election was also significantly reduced. It is believed that, if not for rigging and the use of brute force by the NPP, the unprecedented would have happened where the ruling government would have served for only one term or that, the opposition would have been the majority in Parliament at least. To conclude, as a professional who understands marketing, Mr. Ankrah will be able to effectively put systems in place to market the good works of the NDC especially, the works of H.E. John Dramani Mahama; something the Party has not been able to effectively do so far. Again, with his knowledge of International Relations coupled with his exposure and long service to the party, he will be able to build the right networks with other global political groupings, for a solid NDC. Finally, his ability to express himself proficiently in many major Ghanaian languages like Twi, Ewe, Ga, and Hausa, cannot be swept under the carpet.