Founder of the National Liberation Council (NLC) Stephen Atubiga says he has no intention of returning to the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Atubiga said although the NDC government led by President John Dramani Mahama is righting all the wrongs that pushed him out of the party, he will rather remain in the minority party as a founder than return to the NDC as mere member.
The controversial politicians left the NDC in 2021 after launching scathing attacks at John Dramani Mahama and the party’s leadership.
He had accused them of poor leadership and drifting away from the party’s ideals of probity and accountability, which he said had left the party unattractive.
He was subsequently suspended and referred to a disciplinary committee to probe him over what the party said were disparaging and unfounded allegations he had levelled against leadership.
But even before the committee could begin hearing, he resigned from the then main opposition party and later formed the NLC.
He, though, continued his attacks on leadership of the NDC, calling them out for supposedly neglecting hardworking and dedicated members when they were in power.
Following the NDC return to power, Atubiga claimed his harsh criticisms shaped leadership of the party and pushed it to victory in the December 7 elections.
In an interview on Breakfast Today on Dreamz FM last Wednesday, he extolled President Mahama and his administration, saying, “he has done so much for this country. As a matter of fact, his 120 days in office, I think even if he doesn’t do anything again, it’s enough for this country”.
He pledged to support the President and his administration but ruled out any plan of returning to the NDC, explaining that such a move will lower his standing in the country’s political landscape.
“There is no way I can ever be a member of the NDC again, for good reasons. Today, if you have a ‘Mahama can do’ (autorickshaw), and somebody who has a Mercedes Benz in Bolga, you are all car owners.
“Owning a political party in this country has also made me a stakeholder that there is no way whether it is the devil government, I will not be consulted, or I will not be given a chair to sit when it comes to the national discussion of this country.”
