Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Collapse of CPP, PNC alliance...Nduom sets record straight

By William Yaw Owusu

Tuesday June 3, 2008
Dr Paa Kwesi Nduom, flag-bearer of the Convention Peoples’ Party (CPP) says despite the collapse of the alliance between the party and the Peoples’ National Convention (PNC), he will continue to work to bring members of the two Nkrumahist traditions together for the December general election.

“For me, we the Nkrumahist alliance remains as agreed in our hearts with the CPP name and the proud red collared as our symbol for our march back to the flagstaff house in January 2009. I know that the rank and file of the PNC agrees with me over this.”

“This is not a matter of one party becoming the subordinate to another. It is a homecoming for all Nkrumahists. I am calling for an alliance of hearts no matter what the leaders do or fail to do, the people must maintain their belief in the cause of Nkrumahist unity.”

Dr Nduom said this in a statement he issued from the United States where he is currently on campaign tour in reaction to accusations by the leadership of the PNC that the CPP were to blame for the collapse of the alliance.

“It is important that the people of Ghana know the truth about what happened to the alliance agreement reached recently between the PNC and the CPP.”

“Nkrumahist all over the world rejoiced when, on the morning of May 14, it was reported that the PNC and the CPP had reached an agreement to enter into alliance for the 2008 election. They waited for official confirmation of this from the PNC to calm nerves but this did not happen.”

“Unfortunately, on May 22, Dr Edward Mahama, flag-bearer of the PNC held a press conference to announce the rejection of the alliance agreement by his party’s National Executive Committee but did not stop there and blamed the rejection of the alliance on what he termed a breach of trust on the party of the CPP specifically blamed me for discussing the issue in public in haste.”

Dr Nduom further said Dr Mahama had labeled him as someone he could not trust adding “in essence what Dr Mahama said is that he was denied the opportunity to discuss the agreement with his people and that he was surprised by what he heard through the media.”

Dr Nduom said “we did not enter this alliance agreement all of a sudden. The chairmen of the two parties had preliminary meetings to test the found. Dr Mahama and I also met to exchange ideas on this issue. It was when we felt that something positive could happen that the CPP’s central committee was informed about what was going on.”

He said in all those deliberation Dr Mahama had insisted that he had the mandate to negotiate and talk on behalf of the PNC from their congress adding “this he had insisted on from the vary beginning including the individual meetings with me and fro the formal alliance negotiation meetings.”

“The CPP which had the backing of its central committee asked the question of authority and we were assured that the PNC team had it. So how come after agreement is reached, Dr Mahama says he needed to seek authority from his NEC?, he asked.

“In my personal opinion it is not enough for him to apologise to his party for acting without authority and then turn around and blame others for doing what he insisted all along he had the right to do.”

Dr Nduom accused Dr Mahama of jeopardizing the aspirations of millions of Nkrumahists all over the world due to the latter’ actions and asked him to step “improving the integrity of others.”

He said “the CPP tradition believes that Ghanaian went an alternative to the NPC and the NPP. I call on the CPP family to close their ranks join and support the party to win the election”

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