Politics Of Mendacity (1)

 

Politics in our part of the world has been said to be a dirty game. We disagree. We think some people have decided to give politics the bad name.

Even partisan politics, though adversarial in some cases, is an imperative for the people to make a choice as to those they prefer to lead the country. However, since the advent of the Fourth Republic, a particular set of people have done everything possible to confirm the perception that there is a trust deficit in our politics.

To them, lies must be continually told to the extent that the gullible people accept them to be the truth.

Those are tricks of war times to sustain the morale of the troops even in the face of defeat. These people today behave like Tariq Aziz, deputy Prime Minister of Iraq during the Gulf War, who on the eve of their defeat told the whole world that US forces were swimming in a pool of blood.

That is the level of the NDC propaganda that Goebbels would envy and plead to be taught new skills. The NDC has taken Goebbelsian lies to new levels that its leaders do not feel compelled to apologise if the truth is held at their eye balls.

Recently, it started with their leader, John Mahama denigrating the sterling performance of the WASSCE candidates, just to score political points, regardless of the ramifications on the country and future of our youth.

John Mahama asserts that the students were cheats aided by their teachers and that was why they performed creditably.

Mr. Mahama, our elders say that “if you have nothing to offer your mother-in-law, you do not steal the little that she has,” and therefore if you find it difficult to say anything good about the free Senior High School (SHS), please hold your peace.

Such a principled position would enhance your stature as a former President, former Head of State and a statesman. And again, if it is said that the fish starts to rot from the head then in the instance of the NDC, the least said about the rest the better.

Then listen to Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa on his allegations against the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) that because of the Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML) probe, he had escaped from the jurisdiction. Ablakwa must you lie through your teeth to catch the attention of John Mahama to become a running mate?

Even when your attention is drawn to the palpable lie, you have refused to do the needful by apologising to the Commissioner- General.  Instead you have tried to rationalise your clear gaffe.

Your penchant to be a crusader even when there are no issues is not helping your cause as a law maker. We had the rude shock from Fifi Fiavi Kwetey whose middle name presupposes that he is a Prince, suggesting that the upcoming election is a contest between Ashantis and the people of the Volta Region.

Such a tribal bigot should not be tolerated in our modern day polity.

The rude shock is needless because propaganda is in his DNA as in 2008 he lied during his “Setting the Record Straight” series to help the NDC win power.

He told the people of Ghana before the 2008 elections that former President Kufuor had stolen all the gold bars at the Bank of Ghana among other bizarre claims. When confronted to substantiate these claims at his vetting in Parliament in 2009, he said it was political talk. Why “Prince” Kwetey wants to reduce our national politics into a contest between Ashantis and Voltarians, it is difficult to tell except that he may be taking a cue from the late Kofi Awoonor who alluded to something like that in his book.

 

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