The leadership of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) under President John Dramani Mahama has, over the past year in office, recorded significant progress in governance and the economy. This growth, according to observers, is the result of effective political leadership at both the governmental and party levels.
The NDC government’s stride has been to establish a new leadership and governance system aimed at creating a dynamic approach to handling issues within government and the party.
Independent political analyst David Dunu made these remarks on the Adekyee Mu Nsem morning show on Ahotor 92.3 FM, hosted by Alexander Nana Dogbey in Accra. He expressed the view that the stability of the economy has restored confidence and improved fiscal discipline compared to the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, during which the economy was in a difficult state for the past three years.
In another development, Lawyer and former NDC Member of Parliament for Tamale Central, Inusah Fuseini, stated that the party’s promise to Ghanaians to “do things differently” must begin with how it manages its internal affairs.
Speaking on the matter as a member of the NDC’s Ayawaso East Investigative Committee, he warned that failure to properly address issues such as vote buying and inducement during party primaries could erode public confidence.
“The electorate gave NDC the power to govern this country on the promise that we will do things differently,” he said. “That difference should extend to our internal operations and internal matters within the party.”
He argued that if the party downplays issues surrounding the Ayawaso East primary, it could undermine public trust.
“So if the party treats matters of this nature lightly, it will sap the confidence of the people who gave us the mandate on the promise of doing things differently,” he stated.
His comments follow the establishment of an investigative committee to examine allegations that aspirants offered inducements, including television sets and cash, to delegates during the primary held on Saturday, February 7.
Mr. Fuseini said the committee’s findings were clear. “We came to an unalloyed and firm conclusion that there was widespread illegal activity — voter buying and inducement,” he said.
He stressed that the misconduct was not attributable to a single individual. “Vote buying and inducement occurred in the Ayawaso primary, and it was not limited to one candidate,” he noted.
He disclosed that the committee recommended that the party could annul the election results. When host Evans Mensah asked whether that recommendation was included in the report, he responded, “Yes.”
However, he explained that the committee also cautioned the party about serious legal and practical challenges involved in such a decision. The elections were conducted under the supervision of the Electoral Commission, and the results had already been certified.
“The elections were conducted and supervised by the Electoral Commission. The results were certified by the Electoral Commission as credible,” he said.
He raised what he described as the key legal question: “Can a political party overturn the verdict of the Electoral Commission when it did not conduct the election?”
While acknowledging public pressure for annulment, he insisted that the party must act responsibly. “People may have strong feelings, but the question is whether there is a solid legal basis to support such a decision,” he said.
Inusah Fuseini described the events in Ayawaso East as “acts of impunity,” stating that they violated several laws and internal party standards. He cited breaches of the Political Parties Act, the Representation of the People Act (C.I. 127), the Criminal Code, the Constitution, as well as the party’s code of ethics and values.
He cautioned against responding to wrongdoing with further wrongdoing. “Do you deal with impunity by acting with impunity? Do you deal with a wrong by acting wrongly?” he asked.
He also pointed to timing challenges, noting that the committee submitted its report “yesterday at 4 p.m.” and that “today is the final day to present a candidate.”
Despite these hurdles, he said the committee maintained that annulment was possible, but only after careful consideration of the legal and procedural implications involved.