Stephen Atubiga, a former communications officer for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) who resigned to form his new political movement, the National Liberation Congress (NLC), has stated why he continues to meddle in his former party’s affairs.
According to him, the NLC was established as a replica of the National Democratic Congress, to preserve the socialist ideologies of the NDC.
He bemoaned that the umbrella family is gradually departing from its ideology, and those who are bold enough to call the party out are oppressed and accused of anti-party behaviour.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Mr. Atubiga asserted that the purpose of his forming the NLC was to promote the socialist identity of the NDC.
Stephen Atubiga was a member of the Communications Team of the NDC.
He officially resigned from the party in 2021, citing disloyalty, a lack of accountability and probity, and lousy leadership, among others, as his reasons for leaving.
He said at the time that, following careful consultations with other disenchanted members of the party, “we have collectively decided to split from the NDC to form another Social Democratic Party.”
He had also explained that his decision to resign was “furtherance of the true ideology of the late President Jerry John Rawlings and his principles of probity and accountability, which the current NDC party departed from years ago.”
However, after years of his resignation, he keeps poking his nose into matters associated with the NDC.
When asked why he does that, he said the party has lost its roots, and it was his duty to remind it of its roots because the NDC is the mother party of the NLC.
“That is right. It is so because our mother is the NDC. We broke away from the NDC to form a replica of the NDC as a socialist party. We informed our founder of the NDC before he passed. Our dream is to live as an example of how a solialist party like our mother party is supposed to be. If we fail to criticise the party, it will defeat the reason why we established the NLC,” he noted.
He underscored the need for the party to go back to its roots as one that has an interest in social justice, probity, accountability, and proverty eradication through social intervention programmes.
He suggested that if the NDC had not lost its roots, it would not have organised Mahama’s media engagement last Sunday at the Kempisnki Hotel, especially when it is a socialist party.
“The leadership of the NDC is now running the umbrella party like a capitalist party, although it is a socialist party. The party is supposed to be for the poor and by the poor. Imagine the NDC seeking to organise a press conference to respond to the NPP, a capitalist party, and you going to Kempenski, where the average Ghanaian or an average footsoldier cannot come there to listen to the wisdom you want to communicate. “It is an expensive facility. It is a lost priority,” he declared.
“If the party was founded on the principle of being a socialist, it should not behave as a capitalist. Let me tell my people something: the NDC, which was founded as a socialist party and ought to have introduced more social intervention programmes, has allowed the NPP to rather introduce more social intervention programmes. I dare them to challenge me on this. Put me on record. The free maternal care care, the National Insurance Scheme, was piloted by former President John Rawlings, but the NPP came and implemented it on a full scale. Let’s be honest,” he stated.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana