Accra — This is the last week before Ghana’s population exercises its civic right (popularly known as ‘krokromoti power’) to vote in presidential and legislative elections.
The past few months of campaigning have been intense, and the cornucopia of rallies, public debates and door-to-door campaigns have reached a climax, with media reports suggesting that collectively, GHC549 million (US$288 million) has been spent on the exercise.
The carnival tone of the rallies has been countered by the more sobering, incendiary language of some politicians and activists as well as isolated instances of political violence, giving way to a sense of unease surrounding the conduct of the polls. The collective decision by the ‘international community’ not to attend the elections this time around suggests a certain level of maturity in Ghana’s democratic tradition; one hopes that this level of confidence is not misplaced.
Dividing Lines
“Belonging to a political party doesn’t make us enemies” were the words of Reverend Asante, the Chairman of the National Peace Council, but with the atmosphere on the ground as it is, you would be forgiven for thinking otherwise. A number of party supporters – and to a lesser extent candidates themselves – have gradually engaged in fighting talk in which character assassinations, injurious comments and ethnocentricism have been employed in a bid to curry favour with voters.
This will be the first time for seven out of the eight candidates on the ballot that they have put themselves forward for election before the Ghanaian electorate. It will also be the first chance for the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) to put their ideals for change to the electorate, having been created less than a year ago by Paa Kwesi Ndoum. This is a party which has the potential to become kingmaker, should the elections get pushed into a second round. For one of the candidates, Nana Akufo-Addo, flag-bearer of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), this is likely to be his last bid for the presidency, having come agonisingly close in 2008.
Ghana’s upward development trajectory has meant that these polls are being fought with particular ferocity, as victory in 2012 will elevate the incumbent’s chances in 2016 on the back of a rising tide of economic growth. With the economy set to grow by 8 percent in 2012, compared to the 4.99 percent average across the continent, the next party in power will have the advantage of being able to woo the voter with impressive big-spend projects.