In a striking historical parallel, the president of IMANI Ghana, Franklin Cudjoe, has drawn lessons from the short, turbulent presidency of America’s 20th president, James Garfield, to issue a stark warning to Ghana’s National Democratic Congress (NDC): beware of turning allies into targets.
Garfield, a vocal advocate for African American civil rights, served only 200 days in 1881 before his assassination by a disgruntled office-seeker. But according to Cudjoe, the more instructive drama unfolded not with the assassin, but with Garfield’s own vice president, Chester Arthur—a man described as a “legendary New York customs crook” forced upon Garfield by party elders.
Despite Arthur’s open defiance, backstabbing, and even a tendered resignation, Garfield refused to let him go, urging him to stay and fight for the country. Arthur remained, and after Garfield’s assassination, he succeeded him—transforming from his “odd ways” into a better president.
Cudjoe uses this story to dissect recent tensions within Ghana’s largest opposition party, the NDC, specifically a “virtual fracas” between the party’s chairman, Johnson Asiedu Nketia (popularly known as “General Mosquito”), and former Minority Leader and current Education Minister, Haruna Iddrisu.
The IMANI boss describes Iddrisu as one of the country’s most hardworking ministers, having held three consequential portfolios—Trade, Communications, and now Education—controlling major budgets for 14 of the last 16 years. He credits Iddrisu with phenomenal parliamentary leadership, including battling the Agyapa deal and mentoring colleagues who later became ministers.
Thus, when General Mosquito suggested that Iddrisu’s removal from parliamentary leadership led to the NDC’s electoral victory, Cudjoe dismissed the claim as “insignificant gossip” magnified to eclipse an enviable record.
“If Haruna single-handedly could affect the fortunes of his party, imagine what his abilities could achieve if deployed positively in the next elections, when John Mahama leaves the scene,” Cudjoe wrote.
He argues that Iddrisu, a staunch political pillar in northern Ghana and a godfather to many politicians across all three northern regions, has shown pragmatism over brawl—notably by rejecting calls to impeach President Nana Addo.
Cudjoe cautions that targeting a man who has “absolutely no interest in running for high office right now” is “paranoia dressed up as political wisdom.”
“Every NDC presidential hopeful needs a Haruna Iddrisu,” he said, adding that when the minister eventually decides to contest, “Haruna will need Haruna Iddrisu.”
He urged those in a hurry to succeed President John Mahama to first read Dr. Callistus Mahama’s epistle on service and delivery before demanding a renewed mandate.
The message, wrapped in 19th-century American history, is clear: In politics, one must not wear inadequacies on one’s sleeve—nor alienate cunning but loyal colleagues who refuse to throw others under the bus for personal glory.
