Rawlings would not have sanctioned NDC’s probity and accountability march!

Opinions on Saturday, November 28, 2020

Columnist: Kwaku badu

2020-11-28

Of course, the NDC’s founder, the late Jerry John Rawlings, is said to have founded the party based on the ethics of probity, responsibility, and social justice.

Unsurprisingly, therefore, the principle of probity and responsibility has been the melodious interpretation of the party since the time of the memorial.

It is also true that probity and responsibility have been incorporated into the 1992 Constitution of Ghana. Therefore, all citizens and inhabitants are expected to adhere to this principle at all material times.

So the fundamental question is: have the exponents of the spirit of probity, responsibility and social justice been practicing what they have been preaching throughout the years?

Well, if they have openly failed to adhere to such a principle, then where does the justification for their upcoming probity and responsibility march in memory of the late Rawlings, whom the NDC faithful believe is the ‘father of probity, responsibility and social justice ‘?

However, the fact is that the founders of the National Democratic Congress manipulated the Ghanaians. They promised to enlighten the country of rampant perceptions, corruption, and social injustices.

But what happened after they supposedly purged the country of perceived injustices through the so-called “house cleaning exercise”, in which they treated perceived offenders arbitrarily?

In fact, it is important to note that the founders of NDC appeared on the scene under the pretext of redeeming Ghanaians from economic mismanagement and rampant corruption. And yet they couldn’t even shake off the rampant squalor and corruption in their NDC government, much less across the nation.

NDC operatives, paradoxically, are dedicated to preaching honesty and responsibility, but they do not practice it.

If you recall, somewhere in 2017, the founder of the NDC, the late President Rawlings, claimed with some passion that Akufo-Addo, unfortunately, inherited national corruption at its worst from the former Democratic National Congress administration led by the former President John Dramani Mahama. (see: Akufo-Addo inherited ‘corruption at its worst’ -Rawlings; ghanaweb.com, 11/2/2017).

Former President Rawlings opined: “When this administration took office, the country was literally drowning in the practice of corruption with impunity. This administration, therefore, has inherited national corruption at its worst ”.

Therefore, many observers believe that bribery and corruption, as former President Rawlings would rightly put it, were so pervasive in the past NDC administration that the PNP government had no choice but to indict countless suspects in court.

Ironically, the late President Rawlings is said to have founded the NDC on the basis of the spirit of probity, accountability and transparency. And yet bribery and corruption permeated every facet of the former NDC government.

The bigger question then is: where was the probity and responsibility when they allegedly squandered funds meant to transform the lives of the penniless in society through dubious deals like the World Cup in Brazil, the infamous bus brand, SUBA, GYEEDA, SADA, MASLOC, SSNIT, among others?

Clearly, his spirit of probity, transparency and responsibility is a sham. It is rather an illustrative case of preaching virtue and practicing vice.

Bribery and corruption, as a matter of fact and observation, invaded every recognized department of the former NDC administration, and thus a prominent Supreme Court justice gave them the famous descriptive epithet of “creating loot and sharing. “.

It is therefore regrettable to note that the founders of the NDC indicted and exterminated individuals with unfounded allegations of squalor and corruption, including eight army officers.

However, if we honestly juxtapose the alleged corrupt practices of the army officers killed in the 1979 coup with the squalor and corruption that took place in the former NDC administration, we cannot help but conclude that the generals were “shot at least “.

Dear reader, bribery and corruption, so to speak, were so widespread that NDC founder Rawlings once openly yelled and growled: “I want to remind people that we could not have forgotten that generals they were executed. Today’s greed, corruption and injustice are a thousand times more than what these generals were executed, and if we are not able to restore a firm measure of integrity in our dealings, then the blood of many would have been spilled in vain. ” (Rawlings 2017).

Take, for example, a couple of years ago, a court of competent jurisdiction sentenced two of the numerous corruption suspects in the former NDC administration and sentenced them to six and twelve years respectively.

In addition, more recently, two more individuals appointed by the National Communication Authority (NCA) under the Mahama administration were convicted and sentenced to prison for misconduct.

Indeed, some of us, as a matter of principle, share the sentiments of concerned Ghanaians, who have long held that the sins of the four convicts are rare in juxtaposition with the other scandalous corruption cases that took place in the country. . former Mahama administration.

But despite the convictions and sentences, none other than former President Mahama has been complaining bitterly the whole time: “This judgment by a newspaper affects the credibility of the government. If you learn that multiple sums of money have been lost and that no one has been arrested for prosecution, you are destroying people’s trust in the government’s credibility. Therefore, the media trial must end (ghanaweb.com). “

Perhaps someone should inform former President Mahama that the current Attorney General is seriously working to bring the suspects to the list.

Take, for example, on March 14, 2018, the State filed a financial loss case against the former CEO of COCOBOD and the CEO of Zeera Group of Companies and Agricult Ghana Limited, which allegedly embezzled more than GH260 million under the supervision of former president Mahama.

Furthermore, credible sources have confided to some of us that forensic investigations are steadily progressing in a series of bribery and corruption cases that took place in the former Mahama administration.

As I write, around 21 suspects from the previous NDC administration are on trial on charges of alleged bribery and corruption.

There is also the possibility for NDC Members of Parliament to get double pay and have their day in court.

Given the circumstances, we can safely deduce that JSC Dotse was absolutely correct in describing some practices of the Mahama administration as: “create loot and share.”

Despite its much touted mantra of transparency, probity and accountability, we have witnessed so many intriguing ruses, squalor and corruption in successive NDC administrations. Who are they kidding?

Yet surprisingly, successive NDC government officials have been committing the same crimes (bribery and corruption) for which the founders of their party killed many innocent people.

As I reiterated elsewhere, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a person labeling themselves as an advocate for transparency, probity, and accountability. But it is somewhat hypocritical when a group of people who claim to be the exponents of that spirit turn around and put their hands in the national pocket as if there is no tomorrow.

After all, don’t the NDC apparatchiks claim to be the preachers of transparency, probity and accountability?

So why do they refuse to practice what they have been relentlessly preaching to us all these years?

In short, it is an illustrative case of false prophets, who are constantly scolding their followers that ‘it is written in the Holy Book that you shall not steal’ and then turn around and dip their hands into the church offering bowl as If the judgment will never come

K. Badu, UK.

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