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A former senior policy advisor to former President John Mahama, Dr Valerie Sawyerr, has urged the Electoral Commission (EC) and the security agencies to ensure a free, fair and transparent election on December 7 to consolidate the country’s democratic gains.
She accused the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) of perpetrating violence, corruption and economic mismanagement during its eight-year tenure.
In an article for publication in the Daily Graphic, Dr Sawyerr said Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, had been "sloppy, incompetent and lacklustre" during the NPP’s eight-year tenure and did not deserve the support of Ghanaians for another term in the upcoming election.
She invoked the iconic Bob Marley song "Small Axe" to symbolise the opposition National Democratic Congress' (NDC) determination to challenge the ruling party.
"If you are the big tree, we are the small axe, sharpened to cut you down," she quoted.
The former Deputy Chief of Staff under the John Atta Mills administration urged members of the NDC to remain focused and vigilant.
"We must be vigilant! We must man the polls with distinct alertness and quickened minds. We must not allow any man, woman or hermaphrodite to apply any means whatsoever to manipulate the system," she cautioned.
She cited the example of the unwavering determination of Radio Gold, a pro-opposition radio station, in the 2008 elections as it acted as a channel of accurate and timely information to direct the NDC to victory. She applauded the strength that the NDC displayed in the fight for victory.
Dr Sawyerr rallied NDC members, supporters and sympathisers to rise up and finish the fight — to cut down the “big tree” (NPP) even though the NDC might seem to be the “small axe”.
Dr Sawyerr urged all Ghanaians to remain vigilant and to demand a free, fair and transparent election.
"Let us refuse to sink into dungeons where we devour one another. Let us reject a future of civil war, chopping off arms and legs, eradication of infrastructure and further destruction of an already destroyed economy," she said.
Dr Sawyerr called on security agencies to remain impartial and professional and to avoid any actions that could be perceived as biased or partisan.
"We do not want soldiers at the polling stations! No soldiers at polling stations! No soldiers at polling stations!" she emphasised.
Dr Sawyerr challenged the EC to conduct the election in a free and fair manner and refuse to be cowered into submission by a “slave master”.
“There is an enormous weight on your shoulders and you must execute to perfection so that when you are no longer at the post, you would have left behind a slither of a legacy”, she said.
Dr Sawyerr expressed utmost confidence in the NDC's Presidential Candidate, John Dramani Mahama, saying he was a man of truth and a leader who would bring development to all parts of the country.
"He is a man who extends developmental projects to all corners of the country regardless of religious, ethnic or political affiliation," she said.
