I Was Asked About The Brouhaha Regarding The Parliamentary Approval Of Some Ministers – Hardi Yakubu


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The 8th Parliament; A true test of Ghana's democratic fabric

When I appeared on Joy FM the last time, Benjamin Akakpo asked me about what I made of the brouhaha regarding the parliamentary approval of some Ministers which sparked outrage among sections of the NDC party. I told him I was not surprised and anybody who has the ability to do class analysis would not be surprised either. What is happening between the NDC base and their parliamentarians is a classic opportunity for class education of the masses.

The bottomline of our elective dictatorship is that we have a privilieged class and an oppressed class. The privileged class is not in one party. They comprise the “big” men and women in NDC and the “big” men and women in NPP as well as other parties, top brass of the military, media, civil service, businees etc. This class of people has the same interest – to acquire power and/or influence for personal comfort and security for themselves and their families. Each one of them has some bit of power and influence that the others need, therefore for all of them to achieve what they want, they need to trade what they already have or a bit of it for what they need. This trading often involves discarding the national interest and the interest of the oppressed class. All you need to do is to acquire a little power so that you can use it to bargain for more power or for money, which can be used to acquire more power.

For parliamentarians, the elective dictatorship helps them achieve this by deceiving the people that they have the power to choose their “leaders” to “serve” their interest. In actual fact, they are only used to get into a position of a bit of power to bargain for comfort and security. When you vote for an MP, you’ve been used to acquire leverage and you’re discarded because you no longer have use until four years. What happens in between is the deal-making, power-brokering, money-making, grabbing, grabbing, grabbing. When the time comes for you to be used again, they come back to you.

Reminds you of the #NoVote2020 campaign of the Economic Fighters League?

Now because this system serves their interest, they need to maintain it. So the connivance and collusion needs to continue between the privileged class in the two parties, regardless of what their members think.

NDC big people and NPP big people are in the same class, meaning their interests are the same and they’ll do everything to protect them including fighting against those who genuinely want to get into Parliament to change the status quo. But these are people who must be protected because they are the ones who would use the power they get not for bargain for themselves but for the people. But who are they?

Hardi Yakubu