Founder of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Jerry John Rawlings, believes his party must redeem its image in the eyes of Ghanaians if it is to stand a chance in 2020 elections.
Coming off its comprehensive defeat in the 2016 elections, Mr. Rawlings said a cleanup and the “restoration of our integrity” is paramount.
[contextly_sidebar id=”RKqnsnhjunaZI2HfBGdL5CD4asmT0Gew”]”We don’t like to hear it, but I keep repeating it. We have to go back and seize the moral high ground and I believe we know what we have to do,” he said in an interview with TV3 news.
The former president was clarifying his earlier statement suggesting it would be impossible for the NDC to win back power from the New Patriotic Party in the 2020 elections.
He said he held the best interest of the NDC, as far as the 2020 elections were concerned, but questioned the readiness of the NDC to effect the needed changes to win power.
“I would very much want to see the NPP beaten, but do we have what it takes? Do we have the capacity to be able to wrestle power from them? That is the issue we should be addressing. We should be looking at this question a lot more seriously than we have done so far.”
“We know what we have to do, but I don’t think we are prepared to confront it or that is what I have noticed about some of our people,” Mr. Rawlings stated.
Involving the grassroots
The former President has never shied away from criticising the hierarchy of the party he founded, especially for straying from its core values of probity and accountability, and instead allowing room for corruption.
Having previously called for a complete overhaul of the NDC, he stressed that the party needed to turn to the grassroots, as it puts in place strategies for the 2020 elections.
“…Let’s give the party back to them [the grassroots], they are the ones who actually make it possible to win or lose elections, let’s respect their views,” he advised.
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By: Duke Mensah Opoku/citifmonline.com/Ghana