4 POSITIVE LESSONS FROM THE NPP’S DELEGATES CONGRESS FOR PERSONAL GROWTH AND EMPOWERMENT.
4 POSITIVE LESSONS FROM THE NPP’S DELEGATES CONGRESS FOR PERSONAL GROWTH AND EMPOWERMENT.
Saturday, the 7th of August 2010 was a big day for the largest opposition political party in Ghana, the New Patriotic Party. For the first time in the history of Ghanaian politics, over 100,000 delegates voted to elect the Presidential candidate of a political party, even in opposition. Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo, a former Minister of Foreign Affairs in the erstwhile Kuffour Administration managed to chalk an impressive victory over the affable, gentle and humble former Trade Minister, Alan John Kwadwo Kyeremanten and three others. Beyond the challenges, fan fair, and the speeches, I picked a couple of lessons.
1.NEVER BE AFRAID OF BIG PROJECTS: The decision to enlarge the Electoral College from about 2,500 delegates in 2007 to over 100,000 was a massive one. Too huge to subdue the faint hearted to just perch on the fence and look on. But the NPP was up to it. They threw everything into it to make it work. At the end, there were challenges, but they successfully pulled it off. It is really good to have an elaborate ambition. An ambition that will attract a few skeptics. But if you don’t listen to those skeptics, no matter where they are coming from, you will certainly achieve your goal. The best way to eat an elephant, I have learnt, is the same way we eat an apple, one bite at a time!
2.THERE WILL ALWAYS BE COMPETITION, WELCOME IT: It appeared very reasonable that Nana Akuffo Addo was the one who across all considerations should lead the NPP into the next elections. He led the party in the last elections and comparatively, didn’t disgrace himself. In opposition, the NPP need to put its best foot forward and the candidate who has been there before should automatically be considered. But in reality, that will never be the case. You will the best qualified for an assignment, your friends and colleagues will know but certainly there will be an opposition. You will never get most things in life on a silver platter, even the things you truly deserve. This fact should however never scare you into letting it go. Crave it, work at it, challenge it and you will get it. Nana Addo was not a person to forgo that dream of leading the NPP into yet another election, far from it. Not when his chances were that glaring. We should never shiver because of the opposition, they will always be there. If we see beyond the opposition, we will always take hold of what belong to us.
3.NOTHING GOOD COMES EASY: As a one time student leader, I have an idea what campaigning across the length and breadth of this country entails. It is neck-breaking and energy sapping! Political campaigning I know is worse. You have to travel across rivers and streams. At some places, you have to virtually construct your own roads to use. You have to get a message for every group of delegates you meet. The message to the delegates at the Ledzokuku Constituency will at times be very different from that of the delegates in the Krowor Constituency. It is never an easy task. Most things worth having in life are like that, they don’t just come easy. Getting your dream job is like that, it won’t come easy. Getting promotions is like that, it won’t come easy either. Having a good partner is also like that, it doesn’t come easy. Nothing good comes easy! You have to continually work at it. Nana did, and today, he is the most talked about person in the Ghanaian media.
4.EVERYTHING IS WORTH TRYING: I love Alan Kyreremanten. If he hadn’t contest, I would still believe he would have won if he had. Sure, he might even be thinking the same way. His supporters, including me, will never have forgiven him if he hadn’t contest. He might even not have forgiven himself. “I could have won”, he would have thought. But from the reality of the results, we have all come to the blunt realization; Nana Addo is the choice of the NPP delegates. That settles it. The “ifs” and the “buts” are thus eliminated. Our consciences have been set at ease. The lessons learnt are ours for the future. And what about Nana Addo, if he hadn’t tried, will he have been successful. Never. Whatever is before you today is worth trying, for you will never know until have a shot at it. Remember that old saying, “nothing ventured, nothing gained”? What is it, try it.
I am not a member of the NPP but I have learnt these lessons from their National Delegates Congress. Life is too delicate to blow it. We have to constantly learn from virtually everything around us. Things that concern you and those that doesn’t. Life itself is a learning process and until the last breath, we need not to stop learning. Old Granny shared, “if you see a successful man, learn from him; if you see a failed man, assess yourself”. I believe it's going to be a great day and week ahead, have the best of it. Shalom!
Nii Ayi De Gentlepope.
The contest is definately over!
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