Rawlings Stops NDC

Former President Jerry John Rawlings is said to have expressed extreme anger over an attempt to draw him into a National Democratic Congress (NDC) programme he had no knowledge about. The NDC had publicized a regional rally at Techiman in the Brong Ahafo Region only to be cancelled at the last minute. A radio advertisement announcing the event that was being run on almost all the radio stations in the region but was withdrawn without any explanation. The cancellation of the rally which was part of the activities marking the 20th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the party came as a surprise to party supporters. DAILY GUIDE learnt that the sudden drop of the advert and the suspension of the rally originally scheduled for July 1 were as a result of an order issued by former President Rawlings, the founder of the NDC. Sources within the party told DAILY GUIDE that Mr. Rawlings was angry over the advert which cited him as the guest speaker at the function without his express knowledge and consent. The NDC founder was therefore reported to have ordered party executives in the region to withdraw the said advert without delay and to run a counter advert announcing to the public that he was not part of the event. When contacted, the Brong Ahafo Regional Chairman of NDC, Opoku Atuahene, said the rally was postponed to 21st July because the original day coincided with the engagement of the various personalities needed to grace the occasion. He however declined to name the personalities who were scheduled to attend the rally, saying that they were the hierarchy of the NDC. Mr Rawlings had previously complained about people using his name to draw crowd to party programmes without getting approval from him.