After touring the length and breadth of the country for votes, former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings made a media appearance in Accra yesterday with a clear message for delegates of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) who would be electing at congress on Saturday.
The import of the message was that if the delegates fail to elect her as flagbearer, victory would elude the NDC in the 2012 general elections. �Our country is in no better position today than it was when we took over from the opposition almost three years ago,� she explained.
According to her, many were those who had high hopes when the NDC won power in the 2008 general elections, believing that the government would do things differently from the people it had taken over from.
She however noted that the current Mills-led NDC administration had failed to deliver the numerous promises it made to Ghanaians and had lost touch with the people, hence the need for delegates to show President Mills the exit by voting for her to lead the party to victory.
�My decision to contest also arose against a backdrop of growing division, apathy and despondency among our party faithful. Under the current leadership, our party has been divided into factions that never existed before and, this, in effect, is killing the spirit of the NDC.
In the past, our party had always been open to various opinions and consensus was reached without the creation of factions,� she told journalists at a packed press conference at the Alisa Hotel in Accra.
The former First Lady was joined by her son Kimathi and daughter Amina at the press conference. Nana Konadu, wife of the party�s founder and former President Rawlings, like her husband believed it would be extremely difficult for the NDC to market Mills to the Ghanaians since they (her family) had lost confidence in his leadership.
She could not but make an open admission, �Our current leadership has lost touch with our grassroots supporters�, stressing the urgent need for the party to rebuild its structures whilst re-energising and empowering the grassroots to restore trust and confidence in the principles on which the NDC was founded.
Aside that, the former First Lady and President of the 31st December Women�s Movement noted, �The nation is weary and the party is disappointed because our leadership failed to uphold the principles of the NDC.�
Bubbling with a lot of confidence and enthusiasm, she said, �I am confident that I am going to win in Sunyani. I am restating this to the delegates: that once I am given the mandate in Sunyani, I will win 2012 in the first round-one touch!�
Nana Konadu promised to demonstrate what she described as �a strong commitment to restoring public trust in politics� whilst building a stronger and fairer society if eventually she gets the nod to lead the NDC as its flagbearer.
Party unity is also high on her agenda, coupled with a passionate commitment to restore the values, spirit and vitality of the NDC which was premised on the tenets of unity, stability and development.
Mrs. Rawlings said her interaction with delegates across the country gave her the assurance that she was on her way to victory, indicating, �The delegates have also assured me that my candidature is timely to stop the damage that has been inflicted on the party.�
She called on the teeming supporters all over the country to join her and members of her campaign team in Sunyani for the fanfare that the congress promises. �Even if you cannot enter the venue of the congress, nothing prevents you from travelling to Sunyani to create a true atmosphere and join the journey of real change for the NDC,� she said.
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