The group, Friends of Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings (FONKAR), is fingering the Board Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, Ato Ahwoi, as the man behind comments by the Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Junior that the former First Lady has not got what it takes to become president of this country.
Following reports that Mrs Rawlings had declared her intentions to contest the flagbearership slot of the party in their upcoming primaries, Mr Pratt had been heard on several channels expressing his discontentment at the choice of the Former First Lady as a presidential candidate, saying in some instances that Mrs Rawlings would not even garner 10 per cent of votes.
This is what has irked FONKAR, the group that is strongly bidding for the former first lady to take up the presidency. Nana Konadu is yet to state publicly whether she would contest or not. There have been reports that she had declared her intentions to contest to the party elders at a National Executive Council meeting held recently, but some party leaders have disputed these claims.
FONKAR is strongly convinced that Mr Pratt is being paid and manipulated by some big wigs close to President John Mills, especially Ato Awoi who are threatened by the sheer number of NDC supporters disillusioned in the Mills’ led government and are therefore calling on Mrs Rawlings to take up the presidency.
Speaking on the Big Bite show on Xfm 95.1, a privately owned commercial radio station in Accra, the Communication Director for FONKAR, Dela Coffie said Mr Ahwoi, upon realizing that the party activists are rising up against the party leadership, is determined to do anything to stifle their ambition.
He however, said that FONKAR “will not sit down and allow someone like Mr Ato Ahwoi to get his friends in the media to rundown the image of Konadu”.
Rebuttal
But the man at the centre of the brouhaha, Kwesi Pratt has denied these allegations.
Speaking on the same show, Mr Pratt rather said FONKAR’s response to his comments has only confirmed his fears about the possibility of Mrs Rawlings’ presidency.
“There is no truth in that allegation. But indeed, the statement being made by FONKAR has confirmed my worst fears about the possible candidature of Nana Konadu. The politics of vindictiveness, and lies and slander are a danger to the attempt to experiment democracy in Ghana; and that is obviously the politics that she represents. And that is why I am threatened by the remote possibility of her ever becoming the head of state of this country”.
Asked if he had any personal grudge with Mrs Rawlings to the extent of publicly speaking against her yet-to-be-declared presidential ambition, Mr Pratt answered in the negative, stressing, “I have nothing personal against her, but as a citizen, I think that she does not have qualities of a president; as a citizen, I think that her presidency would be a disaster for this country; and that is all I am saying. This is not vilification; I have never insulted Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings”.
Mr Pratt stated that he would not let these allegations from FONKAR deter him from expressing his opinions on national issues.
“It is an exercise in political vindictiveness; it is an exercise in politics full of lies; it is an exercise in malicious politics and I will ignore it with the contempt it deserves. And of course, I will carry on doing the things that I know how to do best; and that is to state my views with vigor, and indeed, to address national issues from the point of view of principle. That is what I intend to do, and that is what I will continue to do”.
Source: Abena Asiedua Tenkorang/Xfm 95.1/Accra/Ghana