Managing Election- Relation Violence for Democratic Stability in Ghana overthrown an elected government, it was necessary for the PNDC immediately to start the construction of a new basis for legitimate governance. Rawlings' preferred alternative to multiparty elections was to craft a homegrown type of radical populism that sought to eliminate manifestations of elitism and class privilege. He thereby made use of the rhetoric of Afro­Marxism, whereby the society was to be transformed, wealth redistributed, and the exploitative features of the old regimes eliminated(Rothchild, 1995:55). This plan succeeded as he gained massive support from the masses through a number of deliberate activities and actions. During the initial phase of the PNDC's rule, it was common to find Rawlings in the market places, mingling among common people. One of the most enduring images of his rule, especially in the late 1980s, which was often shown in the picture clip before the national television news was one of Rawlings digging and cleaning big, dirty gutters with his supporters. For most Ghanaians who had been used to educated elites or senior military officers as heads of state, this was an endearing image. Immediately upon assumption of office, Rawlings also instituted a populist measure of market control prices for goods that had been in short supply or were selling at high prices due to inflationary pressures. Subsequent to the establishment of these control prices, some market women and traders had been arrested for hoarding goods or for non-compliance with the new control price regime. Populist Policies A significant aspect of this regime was the creation of 86