Prominent lawyer and social crusader Oliver Barker-Vormawor has launched a searing critique of Ghana’s governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), accusing the party of betraying its leftist foundations.
In a sweeping social media post, the activist argued the NDC has become “a pale shadow of its ideological rhetoric” despite holding power under President John Mahama.
Barker-Vormawor traced his own alignment with Ghana’s socialist traditions, recalling his early support for the Convention People’s Party (CPP) as the sole movement with “proven leftist statecraft.” While acknowledging Jerry Rawlings’ early revolutionary aspirations, he dismissed the later PNDC era as “ideologically confused” for embracing “neo-liberal priorities of foreign capital.”
What would genuine leftist governance require today? The activist offered a blunt prescription: dismantle corrupt elite networks, halt destructive illegal mining (galamsey), and nationalize mineral wealth for citizens.
“A true left will end galamsey. But also secure the mines for the people, not foreign capitalists,” he declared. Barker-Vormawor demanded radical action even suggesting death penalties for grand corruption to prove the NDC’s socialist credentials.
“Left politics means the NDC must be prepared to impose the death penalty on those who rob the people dry,” he asserted. “My job is to push the NDC till it shows signs of its ideology.” He issued an ultimatum: should the party fail to demonstrate “Catholic fervour” toward working-class struggles, he’d work to replace it with a truly socialist alternative.
The broadside lands as the NDC governs with an eye toward 2028, when President Mahama constitutionally barred from reelection must pass the torch. Barker-Vormawor’s challenge cuts to the core of the party’s identity: can it reconcile its populist roots with the realities of power? “Only the left can secure society for the many and not the few!” he concluded.