The founder of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) has said the violence which characterized the Talensi by-election is not a reflection of the democracy the nation fought for.
In a post on his Facebook page, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom mentioned that the events which took place in Talensi “is something to be ashamed about.”
[contextly_sidebar id=”nSpkXShMK3y4TSPqC0HBEuLXD5Et0obv”]Narrating what he witnessed while there to campaign for his candidate, Dr. Nduom said he got hint of the violence “when an NDC man rushed up to us near the Catholic Church in Tongo to ask what I was doing there when his party had booked the place for a rally. It was a Sunday morning. I am a Catholic and was there to attend mass!”
“Then the threats, intimidation and ultimately violence – so the party that succeeds in showing more muscle gets the vote and that is democracy Ghana style?”
“If we let this Talensi situation become the norm, what will be the point? Politics of stealing, bribery, violence will lead to more poverty and despair in a nation with no excuse not to be prosperous. What a shame!” he added.
The people of Talensi on Tuesday voted to elect a new Member of Parliament (MP) after their MP resigned after his enskinment as Talensi Paramount Chief.
The by-election was however characterized by violence which led to the destruction of some vehicles belonging to some NDC and NPP leading members while some persons also got injured in the clash.
According to Dr. Nduom, the poverty in the constituency did not warrant the behaviour of the two major political parties.
He mentioned that on his campaign trips within the constituency, “we could feel the poverty in the land. It was visible, staring us in the face. And this is what is fueling the politics of stealing, violence and bribery.”
He chastised the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for engaging in vote buying in the lead up to the by-election.
The PPP founder questioned the refusal of the two parties to engage in politics of ideas saying, “must it take an election for government to put up streetlights, tar a few yards of road and dress up others? What is most disturbing though is the money very visibly used to influence the people – tons of it. Where did it come from? Is my tax money in there? And what happened to ideas?”
“Where we were (PPP) was always peaceful. There was productive interchange about what the people needed – better education, infrastructure of all types, healthcare facilities, jobs, jobs, jobs.”
“You could see lights go on in people’s faces when we described what can be and how good and different life can become.”
By: Efua Idan Osam/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @ osamidan