NDC must do “House Cleaning” first before Electing a Flagbearer – Dan Abodakpi

Less than eight months after the 2020 general election, some leading members of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) have begun galvanizing the grassroot for victory in 2024.

Speaking at a forum dubbed, ‘Securing the NDC’s Future’ in Accra, former NDC Vice Chairman, Dan Abodakpi says the party has become lame and incapable of winning an election.

According to him, the party has over the years deviated from its founding principles; a situation he said has cost the party fortunes especially in the last presidential and parliamentary polls.

“This forum is a recognition of the fact that we have a formidable political organisation which unfortunately has become lame. Assuming that you are running a race with a strong horse, the horse is lame. Can you ride the horse to victory? So it is our collective responsibility to think through the actions that will heal the horse, strengthen the horse so that when we get a rider, however capable that rider is, he will have a very strong horse that will carry him to victory,” he said.

Mr. Abodakpi further indicated that the NDC must not only become an electioneering machine but must exist as a true social democratic party that is capable of carrying the aspirations and hopes of the people.

The NDC stalwart attributed the defeat of the party in the 2020 Election to the neglect of its grassroots and called for a national programme to unite the party at all front; ready to annex power from the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in 2024.

“I’m sure if I ask my colleague from Tema Central that I want to visit her branch today, the branches will be there in name but not really there. So is the case in my Keta Constituency, so is the case everywhere and that will explain the reason why victory will be beckoning us in 2020 and come to the finishing line; that victory will be taken from our hands,” the former Keta MP said.

He also dismissed allegations that the forum was organised to choose national executives and a flagbearer who will lead the NDC into the next presidential polls.

The former High Commissioner to Malaysia also believes that the NDC needs to clean its own houses and be battle ready before selecting a flagbearer to lead the charge into Election 2024.

Mr. Abodakpi is, however, hopeful that the NDC will become formidable by living on the principles of probity, accountability and social democratic ideologies.