Former pesident, John Agyekum Kufuor believes political rivalry is an important principle within the country’s political sphere which helps put the government in check.
Speaking on The Point of View on Citi TV, ex-President Kufuor said the existence of such rivalries should rather be encouraged, even within the same political parties, and not be seen to be inimical to governance.
“Our constitution enjoins parties to be democratic. It talks of sovereignty residing in the people. Sovereignty is not locked in government but the rivalry among political parties upholds the principle of checks and balances. Otherwise, smart alecs will grab [power] and run away with it, and then all of us will lose.”
The former president, however, warned that the significance of putting government in check will be forfeited if the rivalry is not handled in a balanced manner.
“Rivalry should be there but rivalry beyond unacceptable or unconscionable levels is what we speak against,” he said.
Touching on the current state of Ghana’s Parliament, the former president advised the executive arm of government to commit to giving in at certain times to ensure peaceful co-existence for the overall good of Ghanaians.
“Now we have a hung Parliament, this will mean that the Executive must learn to accommodate [the Minority] so that the winner does not take all”, he noted.
“So if the people of Ghana can appreciate this, and we want to live in a harmonious society, we will see how to use the checks and balances to govern ourselves. So between parties, rivalry should be fine. Even within parties, it should be the same principle for the objective of the good. I believe we have laws in place, and it is up to us to ensure that they work.”
