I have read the statement of former NPP Presidential hopeful, Mr. Alan Kyerematen’s statement on leaving the NPP presidential race. I am referring to the statement he issued on September 5. 

I really like how he concluded it, but was his decision not rushed through? Could he not have given it another thought?

The concluding bit of the statement said, “The battle is still the Lord’s and those who wait on the Lord shall have their strength”. That Bible verse from Isaiah 40:31 is made complete with the other part which affirms that “They will soar on wings like eagles………….” So why will Alan quit the race prematurely, and not wait for a possible chance to soar on wings?

Winners never quit

I have always believed in the saying that winners never quit. That has been my mantra and I believe the mantra of many hopefuls especially when a believer stands on the promises of God. 

As I grow older, I have come to believe that the more one moves on the more the forces at play gather traction to pull one back. So, yes, his statement ended well but why is he quitting so early from a race he has set for himself to win just after the first round?

That was the question on my mind when I received the sad and unfortunate news of Mr. Kyerematen’s unexpected withdrawal from his party’s presidential race. I was saddened by the news because I have known him for many years having gone ahead of me as a former Unilever manager and worshipping together as members of Accra Ridge Church. I have known his commitment to be unwavering, so why the surprise dropout?

Much as I refrain from commenting on political issues particularly on party internal politics, the premature and unfortunate news coming from Alan threw me off balance a bit. I heard the news that September 5 driving home a little late towards the ring road.

Then at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) junction was his giant billboard staring one in the face in traffic. Was it a hoax waiting to be corrected in the late news bulletin or a true happening?  Whatever his grievance, I sincerely believed he should have given his thought a bit of waiting.

Proverb

An Akan proverb says that one does not stand in the midst of biting ants to remove any that are already attacking. Yes, the results of his party’s Super Delegates’ conference at the end of August might not have favoured him as he would have wished but as a seasoned politician, he knows very well that that is the name of such games.

It is a game of surprises and sometimes a not-too-surprising outcome happens as well. One’s expectation would have been that he was going to hang in there and perhaps re-strategise, having studied the pattern and then move on to the next stage of the battle just as any General would do and prepare better than before going into the next round.

Next round

The luck of the next round seems even more attractive in that one is told it is going to take a much bigger electoral college to decide. With that kind of numbers, anything could happen with the pendulum swinging in anybody’s favour, including his.

Elections, one is inclined to believe, can be a game of surprises. But no, he seemed to have been dissatisfied with the outcome of the Super Delegates’ conference.

As per the statement he issued earlier this week announcing his withdrawal from the race, he alleged that a number of incidents occasioned the delegates’ conference. From his analysis of the results, therefore, it was clear to him that the conference “was strategically and tactically skewed in favour  of one particular aspirant.” 

As he continues to consult and decides what his next steps in his party’s political life would be, it goes without saying that he has let so many of his followers down with his decision to back out just after the first round. Many of such followers will never forgive him for breaking their hearts so unexpectedly and so early in the race.

It is looking as if those who so advised him had only his interest at heart and not the interest of his “teeming supporters in Ghana and from around the world” that he referred to in his unfortunate statement. His advisers may have given him advice borne in anger without considering the hurt of the people who were in his camp.

As he ponders over all that has gone on this week, may he re-trace his steps casting his mind back to the first day he launched his campaign in the bid to lead a united NPP to victory in  2024. 

The battle is indeed still the Lord’s and anger may have no place in that. His party will need his expertise and support as they push forward for success in the ultimate battle come 2024.