Majority’s internal revolt, good for NPP

The bitter truth that perhaps, is difficult to be admitted in public is that the recent revolt by some 80 or so Members of Parliament on the ticket of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in Parliament against their own Finance Minister has some great positive sides for the fortunes of the Party.

It is better for the party to take that bitter pill now rather than hide it until it explodes at the threshold of the next elections when passivity would have set in at a time all hands would be needed on deck.

The revolt by the MPs, represent the wishes and aspirations of many party members  and appointees who may not be bold enough to publicly go against a position the President has openly supported.

But that position was a rather dangerous and obvious political suicidal bluff the Government and party had adopted.

For such a big political grouping as the NPP, the protection of the job of one appointee in Government should not be more paramount than the cries and wishes of the larger party.

Out of 137 Members of Parliament on the ticket of the party, it is scary that as many of 60 of them would append their signatures to the petition to get the Finance Minister out. They even say there are some 20 more of them who are grumbling but in silence for fear of losing their ministerial and deputy ministerial appointments.

Across the country, apathy, disappointment and desperation has set in at various levels as angry fingers wag in accusations against the Finance Minster. Calls for his resignation, removal or both continue to increase.

The President, over the last months, has been touring the country and as part of his schedules, he has been granting interviews to different media houses. One question that has become a common denominator during most if not all of the interviews has been on why he has not reshuffled the Ministers in his Government, with particular reference to the Finance Minister.

It got to a point that apart from the President himself, no other NPP member of any senior position was speaking publicly about why the Finance Minister must continue to stay in office despite the unsatisfactory economic situation.

The Finance Minister may be bending over backwards and going the extra mile to find solutions to the economic crisis but the reality is that the people say they are fed up with him and no matter how hard he tries, the angry gods are simply not being pacified.

The angry was being transferred on the Party and its representatives in Parliament. They were now being seen as part of the problem, until their recent public statement that they also want the Finance Minister to go, they were seen as not heeding to the heartbeat of the party.

If it would take the President to sacrifice the Finance Minister before the mush needed harmony is restored, so be it.

This is a party that could not vote to elect a Speaker of Parliament when they were a membership of 137 plus one and the opposition group was 137 plus zero.

It is in the NPP’s interest that its long haboured bitterness is being poured out now for it to be resolved I order for the Party to forge ahead.

A stitch in time, they say, saves nine.