Selling The President

First of all, President Mahama's message in his maiden address was okay by me. Like that matters.  But it served its purposes as far as I am concerned, given the circumstances. He started off by commending the nation’s “performance” on the death of the late president and made special mention of the widow and surviving only son. That brought the curtain down on President Mills’ chapter. Then he acknowledged our collective contribution to nation building, again recognizing and mentioning ALL past governments thus far. That was swell. He reminded the nation about our collective interest in and responsibility for keeping the peace that we so apparently cherish; reiterated  his commitment to just and equitable governance and promised to provide us with his plan of action in a policy agenda within a defined time-frame. Basically he sought to present himself as president for the first time and achieve closure on the past with us. Neat and necessary and methinks that was enough. There was no need encumbering this objective with the details of any policy agenda.  

For the first time in decades, I did not cringe or feel irritated during a presidential address. After the first few minutes of uncertainty, I sat through to the end without worrying about what was going to be said. It was neither abrasive nor was it a lazy drawl that usually got me making for the kitchen for a cuppa something in between. Off course I would have wished the president was not that shifty on his feet and I wish I had seen his eyeball even once during the whole address. Presidential groomers needed here!

The presidential baton change will/ should shift the nature of campaigning towards the December elections. The issue of which team can do the job is of much more interest and concern now than is the simple concern to keep the ruling party in power or chuck it out. The real challenge then for the ruling National Democratic Party (NDC) is to sell their candidate who until July 24, this year was only the trimming on their bid to maintain power and not so much touting the good works done so far on the Better Ghana Agenda, even though that is no doubt important. Convincing colourless voters of the capacity of the “stand-in president” and his team (who is or is felt to be on the president’s team) to govern and better still, proving that this team is better than the alternative is critical.  Concretely what do they see as the county's key challenge at this time and what is their strategy for resolving it?

Hopefully the promised policy agenda will/ should set the tone for all of this and it should better have something to say about employment and education. It should also allay any fears that industry and business players might be harbouring. Indeed given that the NDC is not participating in the so-called presidential debates organized by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), this agenda is likely to be the president’s trump card or worse, that which will undo him. 

President Mahama’s main competitor is a well known presidential candidate; this is his second run. The man is either loved or much despised and minds are pretty much made up about him either way. The other contenders don’t stand much chance of winning the presidency. So what does President Mahama bring to the table aside being a “soft spoken gentleman” and perhaps as peace loving and earnest as his papa and perhaps also aside making babies? That’s what his campaign team should be seeking to package and sell because that’s what is likely to motivate cynics like me to cast a vote in the first place and probably also decidedly tip the scales in his favour.

In the meantime my good friend and I think the president should start acting the part. You know, stretch to his full height. He sort of reminds me of the president next door when he took over from his late father. And it’s about time his campaign team started saying something  about his past experiences, especially his time in government and how these speak to his preparedness and ability to take up the reins of government.

What Would The Dead Have Us Do?

I am thinking about death and the dead. Not that I can help it. The Story of late president Mills on the airwaves is a constant reminder. Either the man on the flute is playing dirges or a group is discussing the late president’s life’s history, character and good works interspersed with tribute songs by various musicians. The late president’s pictures are rolling in the background on TV all the time with a little insert that says Ghana mourns President Mills. All programs, radio and TV alike are almost always dedicated to the president’s memory or begin with some reminder that the country is in mourning. So I really can’t help it if I am still talking about the dead!

There are 3 strands to the storytelling; what kind of a man he was; how like someone we know, the late president literally laid down his life for country and underlying these two, the third; what the late president expects from us, the people of Ghana. The first 2 whether you agree with the substance or not, are relatively straight forward, as they are things about which the late president’s words and actions, and the unsurprisingly flattering memories of those that knew him provide insights and direction.

It is the question of what the late president expects from us that I find intriguing.  

On the question of the burial place which thankfully has been resolved, there were some very passionate cries against the Jubilee House as a possible location. “Please don’t’ bury him there, he (President Mills) will be unhappy. He never liked that place”! Yep I agree he would have if he was alive but he dead.

Then when some party bigwigs went to town complaining about President Mahama’s vice presidential nominee (who by the way has just been sworn in; Go Ghana!), the rank and file quickly bared their teeth on radio call-ins. Their message, “our big men should stop the in-fighting. This is the time to close our ranks and win the December polls for President Mills”. They also admonished their top politicians to stop haggling over positions in the party as “the late president would not like that”!

Many state officials, influential persons in society and indeed many on the streets also agree on one thing; that the country’s greatest honour to president Mills is to hold peaceful elections because “that is what he would want”.

And did I hear someone say that the Olympics team to London 2012 was going to do the best they can to bring back medals because that would please the late president? From the look of things I have a fair idea what sort of motivation this ... is not.

I know I am a bit of a skeptic so I am betting the dead seldom declare their wishes from whence they may be. Otherwise I am pretty certain all those weeping, wailing, pouring their hearts out and claiming some significance in the scheme of things (including me who is relentless in my mourning clothes) would be running helter- skelter at the sound of a ghost, even if it’s that of the humble, peaceful Asomdwehene.

So I take it, we really want to say it is in our interest to act in the ways we imagine will make the late president happy.  For the last time, he dead!

Can someone tell that boy’s uncle that his dead brother would be displeased if he continued whittling away the boy’s inheritance?