In a competitive electoral market such as Ghana politicians have no option but to become voter centered if they desire to win and maintain power.
Becoming voter oriented means that the politician accepts and lives with principles he ordinarily would not tolerate. These basic principles of political marketing include:
1. The customer/voter is always right. Even when he is wrong he is still right
2. You do not win arguments against the customer/voter. Even when you win you have lost it.
3. The politician can have his logic but the customer/voter has his emotions and owns his THUMB (the instrument for king making).
What makes the president`s JAB politically problematic is the context of the chief (Aflao chief). The UP-NPP tradition is perceived as Anti-Volta/Anti Ewe.
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The chief is not just a member of a voter segment but he also represents that segment. Chieftaincy issues in Ghana are not only sensitive but highly emotive.
The JAB in my opinion reverses the gains made by the party (a parliamentary seat) in terms of repositioning itself and shedding of its Anti-volta perception.
The political marketing implications:
1. Hard-line Voltarians now have a reason to continue to dislike the party
2. Swing Voltarian voters have a reason to think that the party is an unfriendly option
3. Party supporters (in Volta) will now have a reason to rethink their loyalty and identity with NNP
The bottom line: what would the president/party lose if he did not make that comment?
Source: Anas Sulemana
Sulemana is a PhD Student in Political Marketing, Univ. Of Ghana Business School and also a lecturer at the Tamale Technical University.
