GhanaPoliticsOnline.Com
Controversial highlife musician, Lucky Mensah, has paid a courtesy call on the presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo in his office, which looks very untidy with the desk scattered with books, brown envelopes, among others.
The NPP leader’s book shelve, was also fully packed with books, brown envelopes on top of the shelves battling for space with family pictures and miniature elephants; the NPP symbol.
The musician, whose specialties appears to be making songs for opposition parties for cash, presented a copy of his latest song, “Yɛresesamu”, which endorses Nana Addo’s candidature to the NPP leader.
This comes as he [Lucky Mensah] severed ties with the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).
In the build up to the 2008 elections, Lucky Mensah, released the ‘Come Back to NDC’ track for the NDC, which became one of the party’s official campaign songs against the then governing NPP and its flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo.
But he has now endorsed the candidature of Nana Addo, composing a new song, urging electorate to dump the NDC for the NPP, because the former has woefully failed in its management of the economy, since assuming the reigns of governance in 2008.
The outspoken musician speaking on Wednesday, on Onua FM, alleged that he was being threatened by the supporters of the NDC, following his decision to cut ties with the party he supported since 2008.
“Some NDC supporters called to warn me. Even yesterday, a lady called to threaten me, but I am for the country. I have had several calls of threats, but that will not stop me”, he alleged.
This was followed by a controversial satirical song titled ‘Nkratuo‘ years later aimed at sending a message through one ‘Tawiah’ to tell his big brother ‘Atta’ that things are not going well and that the situation has gone very bad.
Meanwhile, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bantama Constituency in the Ashanti region, Henry Kwabena Kokofu, has welcomed the decision by highlife artiste Lucky Mensah to ditch the NDC for the NPP campaign ahead of the 2016 elections, saying it is a natural phenomenon.
According to him, the NDC, has failed Ghanaians in their 8-year rule.
Reacting to the news on #RythmzLive, the outgoing NPP MP “what he [Lucky Mensah] is saying is nothing new, nothing different from the general perception. People are yearning and asking for change.”
“People like Lucky Mensah coming on board is a natural thing and indeed the beauty of it is that when you get people coming out of their own will, then it’s genuine and natural other than some kind of inducement or pressure being put on them.”
Chairman Kokofu, mentioned that the “Come back to me” hit maker is welcome with open arms as there are never permanent enemies in the game of politics.
“We [NPP] welcome him with open arms. In politics, there are never permanent enemies neither do we have permanent friends,” he said when he took his turn on the personality profile edition of the show with Berla Mundi on GHOne TV Wednesday.
Sounding naturally skeptical about the musician’s genuine motive for joining the NPP’s train, the out-going Member of Parliament said “It depends on how people get associated to you as a politician because they may have their own thinking and what they aspire to.”
“Without probing into people’s mind what their motives are, you take it as it is and look at it. If it is positive, you go with it and if it is negative, then you take it also and try to find solutions,” he stated with caution.
In response to comments by Lucky Mensah that the NDC is a party that kills the career of musicians, adding that the party has failed to manage the country well, hence his decision to ditch them for NPP, Mzbel, disputed the claims, describing it as unfounded.
According to her, as a musician “you support political leaders whose ideas and policies you think will benefit the country and not the political party”.
She said: “Musicians who say parties have killed their career are the lazy ones, and are not creative and depend on politicians to reward them for endorsing or supporting their party and when these exceptions fail, then they will say the parties have killed their career.”
Mzbel explained that, political parties are not responsible for marketing musicians even if they endorse them.
She indicated that “some of the musicians are greedy and sometimes go to all the political parties expecting to give their endorsement to the highest bidder and when it fails, they turn to say things that are not true.”
“We are role models; we should set an example. If you believe in what somebody is doing and you want to support, support freely. If you are rewarded later after your support, fine but if you are not rewarded, you take it in good faith, because whatever you did was for a good course. But if you demand from politicians and they fail you, then you go on radio, and television to insult and backlash; that is unfortunate.”
“Honestly, I was disappointed in Lucky Mensah for saying that the ruling NDC are career killers… because I know very well that the musician [Lucky Mensah] wanted to perform on the show but they didn’t put you there because; you this same person you are here you are there. It’s greed, so if you don’t get to perform on the show and you don’t get what you are expecting, then you say that the NDC are career killers?
“Meanwhile, in the last election, you got a car and money. You keep asking and the moment you ask and you don’t get, then you go and do something against the party. When you get, you change your mind, when you don’t get, then you say things that are untrue. I respect Lucky Mensah a lot but he is not doing this for the country. He is doing it for his own selfish reason… I am not against his political choice because we all choose based on our choices.
“So if you [Lucky Mensah] was given the money you want, would you have come out on radio and say things; and even lie…People who do that are not real and they shouldn’t be taken serious,” Mzbel told Rainbow Radio, claiming the car and money was handed over to Mensah by the late David Lamptey.
