Okudzeto Must Keep His Nose Where It Belongs

Every once in a while a little fly appears on the scene, picks up a position, allows the position to get to his head, then begins shooting off his mouth as though he is the main event in town. Ghanaians have tolerated the unguarded ranting of this little fly for far too long and it’s about time he showed some respect. If Deputy Minister Okudzeto Ablakwa would not show some respect, some of us are very willing to return the favor.

The Deputy Minister saw it necessary to poke his nose where it does not belong. His comments on Former President Kufuor’s assertion that he is the best president the Danquah/Busia tradition has ever produced is completely out of line because the former president’s comment was an entirely internal party matter that should not attract a reaction from a member of the government or from another party for that matter. If the Former president had asserted that he is the best president Ghana has had, which some of us know is the case anyway, the statement would have availed itself to reactions from all. The assertion made by the former president was such that publicly, only party activists can appropriately register their opinion on it.

If Former President Rawlings made a similar assertion, you would not hear a comment from a high level NPP member. Former President Rawlings habitually pitches himself against President Mills and criticizes him unfairly and within the Ghanaian context. The difference here is that Mills is our president even if we differ in party affiliations so every Ghanaian can respond, and indeed have responded to such assertions by Rawlings.

Members of the NPP have been unfairly characterized as arrogant. I challenge those making those characterizations to look the word up. I cannot think of any member of the NPP whether while in government, or out of government who displayed arrogance to the degree which Deputy Minister Okudzeto continues to display. If this is his idea of showing off to his superiors how aggressive he can be in criticizing the opposition, he is inadvertently showing how unguarded he is and how unfit he is to spot the title of Deputy Minister.

As an example of what is fair game to be criticized, Former President Kufuor is said to have commented that President Mills has disappointed Ghanaians. While that is true to even the deaf, dumb and blind, Mr. Okudzeto is well within his rights to criticize that comment. But he also has to be mindful that media personalities are always going to throw test questions at government officials, and sophisticated officials know when to comment and when not to.

Mr. Okudzeto must understand that although political parties bicker, there is a certain decorum characterizing the bickering. He must also understand that the fact that the stage appears to be empty does not mean he must always step on it and sing even if he has a bad voice. If he wants to sing on that stage, he must first learn how to sing, how to manage the audience, develop a stage presence, and finally have charisma. Deputy Minister Okudzeto has none of the above so he must return to do some homework before stepping back onto that stage.