By Arthur Kobina Kennedy A President who seems adrift--- lacking moxie, direction and conviction! A former President, constantly carping and complaining about the failures of the sitting President and forever obsessed with corruption. A governing party divided into quarreling factions, constantly insulting and undermining one another. A growing chance that the sitting President will be challenged in his own party’s primary. Party members openly defiant and contemptuous of their own party’s government. Opposition parties, confident of victory in the next elections but looking like anything but a government in waiting. People demonstrating frequently about the harsh conditions of their lives with no sign that their cries are being heard. A public thoroughly dissatisfied with the government but obligated to wait till the next election before relief. Did you think I was describing Ghana in 2010? Actually, I was describing Ghana in 1981. Are you surprised by how uncomfortably familiar that description of Ghana is to Ghana now? Now, President Mills, just like President Limann then, seems to be adrift—lacking moxie, direction and conviction! Now, just like then, the former President/Head of State, who was Ft. Lt. Jerry Rawlings then and is ex-President Rawlings now, is constantly complaining of the President’s failures and corruption, both past and present. Now, just like then, the governing party, which was the Peoples National Party and is now the National Democratic Congress, is divided into factions—the Mills faction, the Rawlings faction and the Mahama factions. Now, just like then, members of the governing party are openly critical of the President. Now just like then, the major opposition party appears to presume that the people cannot wait to vote out the incumbent government. Buoyed by this misguided confidence; there is a self-destructive jockeying for positions and not much focus on providing a constructive opposition. Hopefully, now, unlike then, these conditions will not lead to a coup but I am concerned and every Ghanaian should be as well. Those who ignore history, it is said, are condemned to repeat its tragedies. At that time, those who worried about the possibility of a coup were dismissed out of hand as “Nervous Nellies” who were panicking unnecessarily. As we all know, there was indeed, a coup, on 31st December, 1981, that imposed upon us a dictatorship that lasted for nearly two decades and set our nation back for nearly half-a-century. Now, just as then, there is a lot of confidence that the era of coups are gone forever, without any evidence that they are indeed, gone. History tells us that coups are very persistent and stubborn things that can happen even in very stable societies. From countries as diverse as Mauritania to Mexico and times as distant as the Middle Ages to just last year, they continue to occur. Just last year, the President of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya was deposed by the army after a dispute with the National Assembly over a referendum to amend the constitution. In 2002, Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez was briefly ousted in a coup that was later reversed by his supporters. Unfortunately, coups are not just restricted to unstable democracies. In 1973, Chile had been a stable democracy for over a century when General Augusto Pinochet, ousted President Allende in a coup and imposed a 17-year dictatorship. Indeed, sometimes, as we know from our own history, coups can come from within a government. It is said that General Santa Anna, the Mexican General and President who ended up losing a big chunk of Mexico to the US was President eleven times and quite frequently was involved in and led coups against his own governments. Even when the conditions described above, as is occurring in Ghana now and occurred in the 1980’s do not lead to a coup, they lead to decreased foreign investments, economic stagnation and a sense of national paralysis. Of course, while there can be a violent coup against a government, there can also be a slow drifting coup, that gradually sap the vital forces out of a government, till in the end, it is ineffective and only a shell of itself. That is the main reason why today, there is a sense of malaise in Ghana. Sometimes too, instead of a coup against the government, there a gradual encroachment on the rights of the people by the government. As US President Madison once said, “I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachment by those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.” Whenever governments fail to ensure public safety, charges citizens with crimes arbitrarily or fails to negotiate in the interest of the people, it is abridging their rights. These activities by government, just like the other activities that undermine government, are subversive of our democracy. Why is there so much uncertainty in our body-politic? Is this due to some defect in our constitution, in our political parties, in our institutions or in our very nature? While it is difficult to say, we can all take some actions to strengthen our democracy. First, we should respect our constitution and let it work. When the President is compelled to remind us that Ghanaians voted for only one President and not two that is unhealthy. Our institutions, particularly, must unequivocally support the constitution and the President. It is inappropriate when a former President can show up at a barracks and be treated as if he is the sitting President. Second, our laws must be enforced without regard to party affiliation or ethnicity. We undermine our democracy when some get prosecuted because of their party affiliation while others can brag that nothing will happen to them because of their party affiliation. In this regard, our courts have a very big role to play. It should not be easy to find a judge to jail a critic of the government when more substantive cases are pending because judges are too busy. Third, our political parties must become more transparent so that their decisions can be more acceptable to their members. It appears that there is a lot of confusion regarding the prerogatives of a Presidential candidate and/or President regarding his party with the result that party members out of favour resent what they perceive as dictatorial postures from their candidates while the candidates feel entitled to make most of the party’s decisions. This leads to bitterness that strains the normally cordial bonds that should exist between parties and their candidates. This issue is important because it is difficult for the public and institutions to respect a President who does not appear respected by his party. Fourth, our Parliament must truly be a forum of the people. It must be the forum where important questions on the people’s minds are raised and answered--- a forum for respectful dialogue and not irresponsible accusations. When Parliament is effective, many of the issues that fester and undermine the stability of our democracy are addressed early and effectively. Fifth, the President must assert himself, respectfully and forcefully in regards to his authority. It is distressing that while the President has been eager to exercise powers he does not have, he has been wanting in the exercise of those he clearly does possess. He seemed ineffective in ensuring that his own Ministers complied with his directive on asset-declaration while unconstitutionally dissolving legally constituted Boards of Public Corporations whose terms had not expired. He illegally refused to pay constitutionally mandated ex-gratia awards while he could not bring down the full force of the law against lawless NDC elements. These are the things that erode Presidential power—drop by drop. Sixth, we must all improve our attitudes if our democracy is to survive. The Presidency deserves the respect of all Ghanaians. Therefore, regardless of the occupant, while we must disagree aggressively if we must, we must do so with decorum. The idea of a former President who routinely insults a President of his own party is not helpful to our democracy. This is particularly so when the former President in question, belongs to the President’s own party. In view of President Rawlings’ past association with coups, he bears a special burden to ensure that his actions are not open to mis-interpretation by his critics. While we trust his good intentions, he must help us to verify that he means well. While the freedom our media has attained in our democracy is commendable, it must be used responsibly. Too often, the media is used as an instrument for unsubstantiated attacks on those in public life. These happenings serve only to divide us and to weaken our democracy. It is clear that the mechanisms that exist for the media to police itself are too weak. We need a strong but accountable media to sustain our democracy. It should not be permissible for someone to accuse a former President of burning his own house without evidence, just as a President must not be able to accuse members of the opposition of being murderers when he has no evidence. Ultimately, however, the best defence against actual or potential coups is a government responsive to the needs of the electorate and in constant communication with it. Let our leaders be about the business of democracy — service to the people and coups will truly belong, just to our history. Let us move forward, together. Arthur Kobina Kennedy E-mail: arkoke@gmail.com