Straining At The Leash

The assertion by some NDC personalities regarding their envisaged form of the forthcoming campaign season could be injurious to democracy. The notice that the 2012 campaign would be based on personalities and not issues presents a spectacle of hounds struggling to undo the leash of their masters who pretend to be restraining them. Unfortunately, the recipients of the threats of campaign of personalities have returned the warning, indicating how rough they could be, given what they have up their sleeves. They have already fired a few shots in a display of their firepower, with devastating effect on the image of the President. Must we allow such exchanges to dominate the forthcoming political season? We bet the politically sane would kick against it because when it starts, nothing can stop it. For all those who have cried out against the politics of insults and vituperations, especially President Mills, there could not have been a better time for their intervention than now. Those with sincere intentions, as they stand up to be counted, would have succeeded in registering their names in gold on the tablet of history as those who once upon a time flexed their muscles against politics of vituperations and invectives. It is a rare chance for President Mills to prove his critics wrong as they continue to claim he unleashes the political hounds on his opponents even as he turns round to pontificate against such anathema. It should be despised by all those who cherish the growth of democracy in this country, especially since nobody has the monopoly over insults and misconduct. The hounds straining at the leash should be sincerely stopped by their master from descending on the political grounds, lest their engagement with those on the other side inflict collateral damage on democracy. We wish it were different, and decency of the highest order exhibited in the corridors of power. It is all but a wish which we are itching to ride. Not witnessing any sign of decency, we are tempted to fret that things could degenerate. We just hope that our fears are allayed by a newfound civility on the political grounds. We would rather President Mills stepped in to leash his hounds, although he rarely does so and would likely not do so at this time. The verbal transactions on some radio stations leave much to be desired, especially with such outbursts emanating from persons expected to represent the face of the presidency. The suspicion that he is behind all the vituperations appears to be gaining currency, a situation aggravated by his insulting silence. With the heat generated by the FONKAR/GAMES duel almost abated, although the ashes still hot, the last thing Ghanaians would desire on the political plane is personality-based campaign as opposed to dealing with issues. One of the very noisy activists served the smelly notice and we thought we could ask for restraint or even a course change, given the rather worrying dossier we hear the opposition guys have at their disposal. We think that applying the brakes at this time would bring in the much desired decency we have often anticipated. If we allow smelly campaigns to feature in the forthcoming campaign season, we will all regret it. But must we allow things to degenerate to this level before we call for a truce? We are not on the verge of participating in the verbal exchanges or even entering the political trench in which some personalities with links to government have already found space. We pray those who have for a while been at the receiving end of these outbursts do not reach their limits, although some of them have warned they could be nearing that dangerous end.