Ghana snubbed PDP and APC

SIR: The currently leading political parties, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), exported their characters to Ghana, recently. They went to erect huge billboards in Accra, Ghana’s capital city, with the pictures of their presidential candidates together with some chieftains of the parties. Ghanaians had never seen that level of desperation; they did not understand its full implications either. Nevertheless, Ghanaians were apprehensive on two grounds: one, they were afraid of their country being dragged into Nigeria’s politics of confuse and rule, which resulted in the Boko Haram terrorism. Rotational presidency was targeted at forestalling marginalisation and a feeling of alienation (south-north), and it worked, since 1999 until GEJ denied its existence in 2011, taking undue advantage of the death of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua from the north. Although major opposition political parties, including the APC, have not violated rotational presidency, the APC nevertheless erroneously insisted that rotational presidency is unconstitutional. Yes, erroneously, because Nigeria’s laws recognise “federal character policy”, which aims at equity in distribution of national resources and appointments among the federating units. 

  In the second instance, concerned Ghanaians noted that Ghana’s laws did not permit foreign political contenders to campaign in Ghana. As such, the government of John Dramani Mahama would be guilty of illegality if the campaign billboards were accommodated. He dared not resist public objection. In Nigeria, anything goes. Ghana is, to a much greater extent, a law-abiding society. Ghanaian rulers, if they want to be accepted, must listen to public opinion, in many respects.

  I spent 12 calendar months in Ghana and I don’t remember ever hearing the name of Mahama’s wife. Anybody listening to news in Nigeria would have become familiar with GEJ’s wife’s name, Dame Patience Jonathan, within a few days. Sometimes, many Nigerians wonder whether it is GEJ or his wife that is ruling Nigeria. The situation is not much different here in Kwara State, where there is an APC governor in power.

• Pius Abioje, 

University of Ilorin.