Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), says President John Dramani Mahama is the biggest threat to Ghana’s future.
President Mahama has performed abysmally during his tenure and therefore does not deserve a second term, according to him.
Nana Akufo-Addo made this known while speaking at the campaign launch of Tina Mensah, NPP’s parliamentary candidate for Weija/Gbawe Constituency on Sunday at Mallam Junction.
“Mahama says he has not finished with his work so Ghanaians should vote for him again but the big question is that are Ghanaians satisfied with his work as president. And what is he going to continue. Is it unemployment, bad economic management, erratic power supply and high utility tariffs?” Nana Addo quizzed.
Recent comment by President Mahama that everybody recognizes that Ghana is rising and doing well in the wake of Moody’s steady rating of Ghana’s economy is a deception, he indicated.
“I have said this before and I want to repeat it. Is President Mahama living in Ghana with us or perhaps he lives in a different country? Has he given jobs to the thousands of jobless young men and women in the country? Has he revived the large numbers of companies which have collapsed under his tenure? Are parents now able to pay the high school fees of their wards? Has he resuscitated the collapsed National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS)?” Nana Addo asked the gathering who responded with a deafening “No.”
Questions Moody’s Ratings
Touching on Moody’s rating, the NPP flagbearer quizzed: “Did the Moody’s rating take into account the hundreds and hundreds of thousands of youth who have no jobs? Have they taken into account the massive and unprecedented levels of unemployment for which President Mahama says Ghana is doing well? We beg of him (President Mahama)…if he is coming to the end of his term of office, Ghanaians are urging him not to say things that will further anger them.”
Ignore Mahama’s Promises
Nana Addo urged Ghanaians not to allow themselves to be carried away by the sudden promises being made by President Mahama just to canvas for votes in the electioneering period.
He said President Mahama has suddenly realized the need to restore the allowances of nurse and teacher trainees.
Nana Addo disclosed that over the last four years, the NPP has advocated the full restoration of the allowances of nurse and teacher trainees.
President Mahama, in a quick response at a forum held at the University of Cape Coast on September 7, 2016, stated that “for partisan politics purposes, you have your political opponent come and say when we come back we will restore trainee allowances.”
“For me, it’s better to lose the election on principle than win it on falsehood. We will not reverse the decision.”
However, according to Nana Akufo-Addo, President Mahama over the weekend told the people of the Volta Region that he had given an order for the immediate payment of the allowances of nurse and teacher trainees.
“Is this how a country is governed? With two months to the holding of the elections, he now sees the wisdom in restoring these allowances. This is not the way Ghanaian people expect to be governed; they expect to be governed with truth not with lies, with honesty not with propaganda,” he said.
The NPP flagbearer said, “We need a new kind of politics based on principle, policy and direction. That is what I and the NPP will offer when voted into power. We are going to work hard between now and December to ensure victory.”
Support for Tina
He entreated the constituents in Weija-Gbawe constituency to vote massively for Tina Mensah to ensure the NPP retains the seat.
“I know after the counting on December 7, all Ghanaians would wave bye bye to John Mahama and his NDC government,” Nana Addo said.
Rosmond Abra Appiah, outgoing NPP Member of Parliament (MP) for Weija-Gbawe Constituency, called for support for Tina Mensah, asking the people in the constituency to vote massively for Ms Mensah and Nana Addo in the December polls.
Tina Mensah is contesting for the seat with her main challenger, Obuobia Darko Opoku of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
In her remarks, the NPP parliamentary candidate, expressed optimism that the NPP would retain the Weija-Gbawe Constituency seat in the December polls.
Other speakers
Other speakers at the event included Sheike I.C Quaye, former NPP MP for Ayawaso Central, Adwoa Sarfo, MP for Dome Kwabenya, Joe Appiah, outgoing MP for Ablekuma North, Osafo Maafo, former MP of Oda, Kan Dapaah, former MP for Afigya-Sekyere West Constituency and some members of the creative art industry, led by Socrates Safo.
By Cephas Larbi