National Democratic Congress (NDC) anchor Nii Lantey Vanderpuye has accused the founder of the party of betraying the values of the June 4^th uprising.

Mr Vanderpuye who is Member of Parliament for Odododiodoo says Jerry John Rawlings’ constant bombarding of the current rank and file of the party of deviating from the principles that brought the party into being is misplaced.

According to him loyalty, solidarity and comradeship are also core values of the ‘revolution’ in 1979 and Mr Rawlings have strayed from these.

“…I believe that if there is anyone who has betrayed the course of the June 4^th uprising, then it is the man himself who led it,” he told Roland Walker on the AM Show on Joy News channel Tuesday. He was responding to why he absented himself from the commemoration of the day on Monday.

Nii Lantey Vanderpuye

“One of the basic tenets of the June 4^th uprising was solidarity comradeship and fighting for colleagues and comrades… and together winning is the most appreciable thing in a revolution process,” Nii Lantey explained.

“…in that vein I have never been happy, I am not happy and I will never be happy with his [Rawlings] continues vilification, washing our dirty linen in public and the breaking the code of comradeship and breaking the camaraderie that I expected between cadres and people who are of the revolution…” he continued.  

He added that since Rawlings had broken all these values then he [Rawlings] shouldn’t expect him to stand with him in comradeship.

JJ Rawlings

Former President Rawlings has constantly accused the erstwhile National Democratic Congress government led by John Mahama of deviating from the principles of probity, truth and accountability.

According to Mr Rawlings “babies with sharp teeth” who are people he describes are only seeking public office for personal gains have infiltrated the party.

But Mr Vanderpuye, taking a jab at this assertion argues that Mr Rawlings’ government also had people who didn’t adhere to the principle he Rawlings speaks about hence why does he pester Mr Mahama?

“…in his government, people were not adhering to the principles,” he said.

Responding to Rawlings accusation of NDC stalwarts who have deviated from the principles Mr Vanderpuye accused Rawlings of bad parenting alluding the situation to a Biblical verse.

“Treat the children the way they should grow, and when they are old they won’t depart from it,” he said.

Member of Parliament for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Emmanuel Agyarko, who was also on the show argued that he couldn’t disagree with Rawlings because he [Rawlings] is an insider in the NDC and he can’t refute what an insider says.

MP for Ayawaso West, Emmanuel Agyarko

Emmanuel Agyarko alluded his argument to an analogy saying that “if a frog comes out of the water to tell you that the crocodile has died, you are not in the water so you are in no position to disagree”.

The stalwarts of the NDC celebrated the 39^th anniversary of the June 4^th uprising Monday at Madina in Accra. Mr Rawlings in his speech urged the party to stick to the values of the uprising.

“June 4^th is not about the semantics of probity accountability, freedom, justice truth and integrity. It is a unified force and power that can move mountains. It is a force that defies negativity and revolves around a fulcrum of ordinary people of power,” he said.