Political ‘Evangelism’ Hits NDC

Throughout time there had been a strong emphasis on understanding the voter behaviour of a people and its relation to their religious belief.

In America for instance, a historic percentage of white Christian evangelicals voted for Donald Trump in the last election, even though many doubted his faith.

And here in Ghana, Mr. Joseph Tetteh Terkper, Constituency Organiser hopeful for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Lower Manya Krobo constituency seems to have also been caught in that drift.

In a political poster circulating on social media to demonstrate his eagerness to restore the reputation of the NDC in his constituency, Terkper is rallying on the Motto, “Behold, Jesus Is Coming Soon.”

This puzzling tagline, ostensibly picked from Revelation 22:12 in the Holy Bible, has since raised eyebrows, with many wondering what message the politician sought to convey to the delegates.

Lower Manya Krobo constituency has for decades been the stronghold of the NDC, consistently trashing its closest rival, the New Patriotic Party, by several thousands of votes. But for the first time in history, the party narrowly won the 2016 parliamentary election by a miserable 300 votes―sending fears down the spines of many party faithful.

It may be on this premise that Terkper is referring to himself as the the ‘Messiah’ that the party needs to regain its hold on the constituency.

Or could it be that the candidate wanted to use his political seat as an evangelism tool to draw his constituents to Christ?

The strategy, for whatever reason, raises the question: “Are politicians now climbing on the people’s religious inclination to ride to power?” Mr. Joseph Tetteh Terkper may be the only one to answer this question. How sad that efforts to reach him for clarification have failed.

By: Grace Ablewor Sogbey/ [email protected]