According to most analysts, the 2024 is a two-horse race between the governing New Patriotic Party and its main rival the opposition National Democratic Congress.
Nonetheless, both independent candidates and other minor political parties are promising to give the “titans” a big surprise at the ballot box.
Among the plethora of minor political parties promising a “volcanic eruption” is the People’s National Convention (PNC). At a just-concluded women’s wing meeting in Koforidua, the Party pledged to capture power in the election of 2024.
Speaking to the media, PNC General Secretary Janet Nabla sounded very optimistic about her party’s chance of victory.
“It’s true that we’re winning hands down. Ghanaians are looking for a third force because the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have alternated power amongst themselves, and Ghanaians have realized that the two political parties have not helped them. Ghanaians are looking for a change and that is the PNC. We are coming with full force,”
Janet Nabla
Furthermore, PNC’s women’s wing further expressed its intention to nominate women for 40 percent of the entire 275 Parliamentary seats it intends to contest.
Under this “Operation Get Women Parliamentarians” in broad decision-making processes to fortify the country’s multiparty system.
Madam Nabla gave a hint of what Ghanaians should expect when her party comes to power and laid claims to some social intervention policies ongoing in the country.
“PNC, our policies being operated in the country, we have school feeding, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), GETFund, these are policies that ten PNC in 1999 campaigned about. Ghanaians are those benefitting from these initiatives. We’re coming with full force to be able to implement our programs the way they are supposed to be implemented. If you pick my programe and you are implementing it, of course, you will have challenges. When we come, we will put more meat into the skeletons you are now looking at.”
Madam Janet Nabla
Growing calls for Nkrumaist Unity
As an offshoot of Nkrumah’s political tradition, some people are rather calling for the grand merger of all Nkrumaist Party as their only chance of returning to power.
Since the 1966 coup that ousted Dr. Kwame Nkrumah from office and the brief leadership of Dr. Hilla Liman, the Nkrumaist political tradition has become dispensable on the Ghana political map.
Election after election, the result paints a very bleak picture for these parties.
To redeem their relevance and increase their chances of winning power, some experts have suggested that they unite into a single Nkrumaist party.
Even among the public, the sentiment has gained strength, in line with this thought. A pro-Nkrumaist group convened a conference in Sunyani to address their division and canvass for unity as their best short for power.
Mind you, the Convention People’s Party (CPP), People’s National Convention (PNC), Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP), and the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) have either openly stated their Nrumaist stance or are seen as such and were duly represented at the convention.
Speaking at the convention, the Election 2020 running mate of the PNC, Dr Divine Ayivor called for unity saying, “Let us, therefore, apply our energies to make this effort to unite the Nkrumaist front a reality,”
“We want to give hope to all Ghanaians,” he stated, adding that the formation of the UNF was laudable and should, therefore, be supported by all well-meaning Nkrumaists, since none of the fragmented parties could win an election alone.
Nii Adjetey Sowah, of CPP called for action and reminded participants that “We cannot continue to run our political parties as small NGOs.”
The Nkrumahist parties are rooted in the ideologies of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s independence hero.
Historically weakened by internal conflicts and characterized by splits which have drained their collective strength and appeal to voters.
Nkrumaist parties have faced significant challenges in maintaining unity, despite their emphasis on socialism, self-reliance, and pan-Africanism.
With the PNC promising to surprise the NDC AND NPP, will the victory be attained simply on the party’s accord. It would finally emanate from a powerful Nkrumaist alliance.
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