Politicians who rely solely on their personal and private resources to sponsor their campaigns in competitive elections are bound to fail and would be better off throwing in the towel before the bell rings, says Sylvester Mensah, Chief Executive of Ghana�s National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).
Mr. Mensah, himself a smart politician who had won as well as lost competitive elections in the past, argues further that when competing in national elections, it is prudent to form alliances and blocs rather than contest as an individual with a supposed independent mind.
�To be independent and to think that it is one�s independence, objectivity and power of ideas alone that will win the day, is foolish. Simply stated, party politics does not work that way� In party politics, one needs to take a position and stick with it, however wrong that alignment or position may appear. It is better to align and loose as a group than to claim to be independent and lose standing alone.�
Mr. Mensah, better known as Sly, advances these arguments in his autobiography, �In The Shadows of Politics: Reflections from My Mirror�, a new book causing a stir in political circles.
Sly disclosed he arrived at these propositions after his rather daring endeavor to contest for the General Secretary position of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the famous 2005 National Congress of the NDC that saw some contestants with their supporters violently flogged till they fled or switched loyalty.
�My core message was that I belonged to no camp. To further this, I made it known that I had an open mind, and hat I believed in principled loyalty � that is, loyalty in politics must be based on principles, not on personality � and that I condemned sycophancy. � I realized rather late, however, that my message of not allying myself to any bloc was really a disadvantage. Every party member and executive � indeed, everyone I was attempting to win over was allied with one camp or another. So my stance of non-alliance confused everyone,� Sly noted in the book.
�In The Shadows of Politics: Reflections from My Mirror� gives other behind the scene revelations of machinations within the inner circles of the NDC right from its formative years, through to when it lost political power in 2000 and continues to when it regained political power in 2012.
Sly also gave an exclusive narrative of the international diplomatic row that got ignited when his father, Lovelace Mensah; a Diplomat during the Convention People�s Party (CPP) led-government, was sent by President Kwame Nkrumah to deliver a secret letter to Politicians who rely solely on their personal and private resources to sponsor their campaigns in competitive elections are bound to fail and would be better off throwing in the towel before the bell rings, says Sylvester Mensah, Chief Executive of Ghana�s National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).
Mr. Mensah, himself a smart politician who had won as well as lost competitive elections in the past, argues further that when competing in national elections, it is prudent to form alliances and blocs rather than contest as an individual with a supposed independent mind.
�To be independent and to think that it is one�s independence, objectivity and power of ideas alone that will win the day, is foolish. Simply stated, party politics does not work that way� In party politics, one needs to take a position and stick with it, however wrong that alignment or position may appear. It is better to align and loose as a group than to claim to be independent and lose standing alone.�
Mr. Mensah, better known as Sly, advances these arguments in his autobiography, �In The Shadows of Politics: Reflections from My Mirror�, a new book causing a stir in political circles.
Sly disclosed he arrived at these propositions after his rather daring endeavor to contest for the General Secretary position of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) during the famous 2005 National Congress of the NDC that saw some contestants with their supporters violently flogged till they fled or switched loyalty.
�My core message was that I belonged to no camp. To further this, I made it known that I had an open mind, and hat I believed in principled loyalty � that is, loyalty in politics must be based on principles, not on personality � and that I condemned sycophancy. � I realized rather late, however, that my message of not allying myself to any bloc was really a disadvantage. Every party member and executive � indeed, everyone I was attempting to win over was allied with one camp or another. So my stance of non-alliance confused everyone,� Sly noted in the book.
�In The Shadows of Politics: Reflections from My Mirror� gives other behind the scene revelations of machinations within the inner circles of the NDC right from its formative years, through to when it lost political power in 2000 and continues to when it regained political power in 2012.
Sly also gave an exclusive narrative of the international diplomatic row that got ignited when his father, Lovelace Mensah; a Diplomat during the Convention People�s Party (CPP) led-government, was sent by President Kwame Nkrumah to deliver a secret letter to Patrice Lumumba, the Congolese independence leader, who was then under house arrest in Congo.
Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, in his foreword said the book has lessons for a heterogeneous audience but most especially politicians and political youth in particular.
In her review of the book, Professor Esi Sutherland-Addy noted: �My personal impression is that this is a life story that is still in the making. He has so far had a full life enriched by his relationship to his parents � his mother especially as wells as his relationship with his wife � and their family. He acknowledges his mentors also along the way. His openness about this personal aspect of his life and about the spiritual growth that merges out of it is commendable because many male public personalities would find it either very difficult or irrelevant to let the public into the recesses of their private space.�
Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, in his foreword said the book has lessons for a heterogeneous audience but most especially politicians and political youth in particular.
In her review of the book, Professor Esi Sutherland-Addy noted: �My personal impression is that this is a life story that is still in the making. He has so far had a full life enriched by his relationship to his parents � his mother especially as wells as his relationship with his wife � and their family. He acknowledges his mentors also along the way. His openness about this personal aspect of his life and about the spiritual growth that merges out of it is commendable because many male public personalities would find it either very difficult or irrelevant to let the public into the recesses of their private space.�
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