NPP Presidential Candidate Nana Akufo-Addo yesterday traveled to Burkina Faso to hold talks with President Blaise Campaore. Before that, the candidate last Friday held similar talks with President Faure Gnasingbe of Togo.These discussions are absolutely normal in competitive politics in established democracies across the world. Indeed, the more presidents of foreign countries are willing to grant you audience the more serious your candidacy is seen both domestically and international.
Akufo-Addo is certainly the first to have introduced this into our maturing democracy. These trips have generated some debates, some informed, others yet to be informed. Only a week ago, on Wednesday February 6, the British government confirmed that "Prime Minister Gordon Brown will hold informal talks with US Republican presidential hopeful John McCain.”
The Arizona senator - who has cemented his frontrunner status in the Republican Party after Super Tuesday - had requested the meeting, Brown's Downing Street Office said Wednesday.Brown's spokesman Michael Ellam said the talks set for Friday are not in any way aimed at implying that the prime minister backs the 71-year-old senator. "The government’s position is that this is entirely a matter for the people of the United States," Ellam explained.
"We take no view on who should be the next American president," the spokesman continued. The disclaimer was seen as necessary because when President Clinton met opposition leader Tony Blair in 1996 it was seen as no big deal because both were seen as representing centre-left or liberal wings of their respective countries’ politics.On Thursday November 28, 2007, Conservative leader David Cameron said he had a "very positive" half-hour meeting with US President George W Bush during his trip to Washington. They discussed areas including Iran, Afghanistan, free trade and climate change and "got on very well", he said. "We had a good conversation about some issues that Britain and America really need to work together on," he added.
David Cameron, who had made public statements against the Bush approach to the 'War on Terror’ knew how important it was to be granted audience with the US President, amid concerns that Bush might not find time to see him. The White House itself was apparently irritated by what they saw as "pre-trip spin" coming from the Conservative Party. For an opposition party of another country to be granted presidential audience is always seen as a big diplomatic coup. It is ‘high’ politics. If in doubt ask pre-Blair Labour leader Neil Kinnock who had a disastrous trip to the White House in 1987 to only be briefed by President Reagan’s spokesman. Of course, Reagan, the godfather of Neo-conservatism did not want to disappoint his ideological soul mate, Margaret Thatcher.
Though, John McCain, the Republican frontrunner in the race for the White House, abruptly cancelled a trip to Europe that would have involved dropping in on Gordon Brown, the trip was just one of a long tradition of international politics. But later last Wednesday, McCain dropped his plans for a European trip because of the pressure of the presidential campaign. Downing Street said: "As Senator McCain has just announced, due to his commitments in the presidential nomination primaries, he has decided that he will no longer be attending the Munich security conference at the weekend, and will not therefore be able to come via London to see the prime minister at this time."
McCain had initially requested the meeting with Brown because he was planning to "pass through" London on his way to Munich.Akufo-Addo says the purpose of these trips to leaders in our West African region and to others on the wider continent, is to share ideas on mutual interests regarding security and development. It is also important for Ghanaians to understand that not since Kwame Nkrumah have Ghanaians seen a presidential candidate who has made the Pan-Africanist agenda a core part of his leadership vision.
We should rather admire these advanced political maneuvers and gestures coming from Akufo-Addo as all very much a part of his preparation for the presidency. This is a candidate who understands how important peace and stability in our region is to fulfilling his own progress mission for Ghana. This is a candidate who believes Ghana can best realise its ultimate goal for prosperity and security by pushing forward the integration agenda. In Akufo-Addo we have a leader who is a chief strategist and negotiator. A leader who believes Africans can do far better than we have so far realised. We believes he has what it takes to push that Nkrumah agenda to its most meaningful destination since our forefathers dreamed of it.
The stage has been set. President Kufuor has brought back this country’s dignity, pride and economic stability. Of course, the NDC also played their bit. Now is the time to encourage the next level of leadership that can make that dream happen. Let us embrace this new phenomenon and allow the preparation to go on. For our presidential candidates to hold discussions with other presidents should not be reduced to a request for them to interfere. If that was what Nana Akufo-Addo intended he would not have asked his spokesperson to issue a statement on his Lome trip.
Source: PFM
