JFK exchanging pleasantries with Stephen Ayesu Ntim and other party stalwarts
THE NEW Patriotic Party (NPP) says it is more than determined to harness the best faculties in the country to provide solutions to curtail the prevailing developmental challenges.
Justin Frimpong Kodua, General Secretary of the NPP, who addressed the media yesterday in Accra to usher in the NPP’s 30th anniversary, made this known.
“The NPP sees Ghana’s current challenges as yet another opportunity for the party and government to do what it does best and get the country out of the difficulties it is facing. We aim to reduce inflation to post-pandemic levels, keep the national debt at sustainable levels, create jobs and fund public infrastructure projects, particularly roads and schools. As reiterated by the Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta in the Mid-Year Budget Review, President Akufo-Addo is determined to revive the economy in the next two and half years.
“We believe this can and will be done and therefore, admonish government appointees to put in extra efforts to aid the country’s economic renaissance. Further, we urge party communicators to be tolerant of criticisms and embrace dissenting opinions as the party seeks to win a third consecutive general election (Breaking the 8). The New Patriotic Party was officially registered in Ghana as a liberal democratic party on July 28, 1992, but its antecedents can be traced to the UGCC which was the first political party in our country.
“We, the current adherents are extremely proud of the tradition to which we lay claim and the role that the New Patriotic Party and its antecedents have played in making the rule of law, multi-party democracy, respect for individual liberties and the pursuit of a liberal economy the distinguishing factors of the political and economic landscape of Ghana,” he stressed.
He recounted how the Kufuor administration in 2001, inherited very difficult economic conditions but “we showed our true mettle by not only overcoming the problems we met but taking on the most ambitious programme of economic and social interventions.”
“In 2001 that the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition had its second opportunity at governance following the swearing in of John Agyekum Kufuor as President, it was a trying time to assume office, and some felt we had been served a poisoned chalice because of the very challenging economic conditions the country was in. The Kufuor administration took the brave but unpopular decision to subscribe to the IMF Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) programme. Despite the gloomy economic conditions at the onset of his administration, the Kufuor government would perform what many have termed as a miraculous economic turn-around, by his second tenure in office. “Notable among his achievements was the attainment of a lower middle-income status economy in 2007, introduction of the National Health Insurance Scheme, School Feeding Programme, Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP), National Youth Employment Programme, Metro Mass Transport System, Cocoa Mass Spraying, Repeal of Criminal Libel Law and Capitation Grant,” he explained.
The NPP was formed in July 28, 1992. The party’s formation would not have been possible without the contributions of Chief S.D. Dombo, R.R. Amponsah, Baffour Osei Akoto, Albert Adu Boahen, Victor Owusu, John Agyekum Kufuor, J.H. Mensah, Appenteng Appiah Menkah, Abaifa Karbo, among several others.
BY Ebenezer K. Amponsah