NPP Not Fit to Keep Government on Its Toes – Mr. Benjamin Kofi Quashie
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has been heavily criticized by Mr. Benjamin Kofi Quashie, Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Council of Elders in South Africa, as being incapable and lacking the integrity to be an effective opposition force in Ghana's democracy. The recent behavior of the NPP and its previous track record while in power are sufficient pointers to a party that is not fit to hold the current ruling government accountable.
According to Mr. Quashie, one of the clearest signs of the party's lack of credibility has been how the NPP decided to issue over 100 mining licenses after it had lost the 2024 general elections. For Mr. Quashie, this move was clearly in total disrespect for the people of Ghana and, most importantly, in total disregard for the principles of democracy. He clarified that a government going out of power making such key policy decisions after rejection by the people through their vote shows a lack of accountability and disregard for the will of the people.
Mr. Quashie also criticized the NPP for financial profligacy while in power. According to him, the party made excessive spending, particularly during the COVID-19 era where huge financial resources were at hand. Rather than using these funds to implement sustainable economic policies, he accused the NPP of squandering the resources, and this led to national hardships as well as economic instability in the country. In his view, such fiscal indiscipline has caused profound wounds to the national economy, and this further shows the NPP's unsuitability to be a watchdog over the current government.
Beyond the economic mismanagement, Mr. Quashie bemoaned the politicization of state institutions under the NPP's administration. He quoted institutions such as the Electoral Commission and the Supreme Court that, in his view, lost credibility with what he alleged as politically biased appointments. Interference by NPP in such institutions, he said, is undermining democracy and setting up a situation where things that are supposed to be done fairly and by the book would be compromised. To correct that, he proposes an all-over revamp of such institutions to restore public trust in the democratic governance of the government.
Commenting on recent electoral developments, Mr. Quashie described the Assin North by-election as an expression of a popular discontent with the NPP. The electorate, he said, had through the vote sent a clear message that they have no confidence in the NPP to rule responsibly or to hold the current administration accountable. He believed the by-election was a clear indicator of public opinion and a rejection of the NPP's style of politics.
Mr. Benjamin Kofi Quashie thus concludes by stating that to his mind, NPP has lost the moral high ground as well as the trust of the people for them to perform its function of offering alternative opposition effectively. Their behaviors both when they are in power and outside of power demonstrate complete contempt for the tenets of democratic process and aspirations of the people. In doing so, Mr. Quashie added, a nation like Ghana must have institutional reform combined with new priorities on accountability and transparency.
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NPP Not Fit to Keep Government on Its Toes – Mr. Benjamin Kofi Quashie
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