Prioritise constructive engagement - NDC urges political actors
The ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has urged political actors to prioritise constructive engagement rather than misinformation.
It noted that democracy thrived on credibility and informed public discourse.
“In a democracy, elections are not won by silence. They are won by credibility, trust, and constant engagement,” it said.
Setting records
Addressing journalists in Accra on May 7 to announce the revival of the party’s “Setting the Record Straight”, a Deputy Communications Officer of NDC, Godwin Ako Gunn, stated that the NDC was not afraid of criticism.
“In fact, we welcome constructive scrutiny. But we will not tolerate deliberate falsehoods, character assassination and coordinated propaganda. Every lie will be confronted with facts. Every distortion will be corrected with evidence,” he stressed.
Mr Ako Gunn also praised the government’s communication efforts but insisted that political misinformation required a stronger and more direct response from party communicators, hence the revival of the party’s “Setting the Record Straight” communication platform, aimed at countering misinformation and strengthening political accountability in the public space.
He explained that the initiative was being reintroduced as a strategic response to what he described as a growing trend of political misinformation and propaganda in the country’s democratic space, particularly by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).
He said the NDC could no longer afford to remain silent in the face of what he described as deliberate distortion of facts by the opposition, stressing that the party would now respond to issues in real time to protect its record in government and defend its policies.
“We are here to affirm a political responsibility to defend truth, protect our democratic gains, and ensure that propaganda does not distort the will of the Ghanaian people,” he stated.
Old playbook
Mr Ako Gunn accused the opposition NPP of relying on misinformation and half-truths to shape public perception, arguing that such tactics were not new in the country’s political history.
According to him, similar communication strategies in the past had sought to undermine the achievements of the NDC when it was in office.
He referenced the period leading up to the 2016 general election, claiming that the NDC lost power partly due to its failure to respond aggressively to propaganda.
He cited infrastructure developments, including road projects, education expansion initiatives, and airport upgrades, which he said were underplayed at the time.
“The same playbook is being deployed today,” he said, stressing that recent claims regarding the economy, procurement processes, and state institutions such as GoldBod were part of a coordinated attempt to erode public trust.”
Mr Ako Gunn defended government economic performance, citing improvements in inflation, currency stability, and debt indicators, and argued that recent fiscal interventions had contributed to macroeconomic stability.
