Akufo-Addo storms B/A
The presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has stormed the Brong Ahafo Region with an agenda to win the majority of the popular votes in the region and secure the majority of the parliamentary seats.
Advertisement
In what seemed to be a departure from the norm of holding one regional rally in all the regions, he held two separate rallies, one at Techiman and the other at Sunyani in the bid to drive the agenda of gaining an upper hand in the region.
Addressing huge gatherings of party faithful and sympathisers at both rallies on Friday, he made passionate appeals to the people to come out in their numbers and vote for the party, saying the region played a crucial role in being the decider of the party’s victory at the December 7 polls.
He stated emphatically that “if we win the Brong Ahafo Region, then we have won the rest of Ghana.”
‘I will look into the DKM saga’
Nana Akufo-Addo also gave an assurance to the people of the region that if given the nod to become president, he would look into the DKM microfinance saga that had led to the loss of huge sums of money to the people.
That, he said, would ensure that there was due diligence and that those who were affected had justice served them in the retrieval of their various investments.
He also announced a reduction in fuel prices to boost the activities of commercial drivers in the area as they cart goods to the Techiman market, which is said to be one of the biggest markets in the country.
He also touched on the institution of the Zongo Development Fund, which he said would be part of his first budget in 2017 when voted for to become the president.
He said allowances would also be paid to Islamic teachers in order to give impetus to Islamic studies in addition to the restoration of incentives that boosted the cocoa industry under the era of former President Kufuor, some of which he identified as mass spraying, the introduction of high tech, provision of seedlings, fertilisers and others.
Nana condemns ethnocentric politics
Nana Akufo-Addo again condemned the whipping up of ethnocentric sentiments by President Mahama, saying such divisive tendencies would not help the national cause.
“Let’s eschew the divisive tendencies. We are all one people. Let’s stand for a united, indivisible Ghana,” he said, and added that the future of the country could only be secured when it stood united.
He cautioned against complacency and the tendency to think that the victory had already been secured and charged all who wanted change not to sit on the fence and hope that change would occur.
For change to occur, he said, there was the need for all to be actively involved in the electoral process by casting their votes for the elephant and being vigilant on election day.
He said the plight of Ghanaians had become miserable; hence, the need to vote out the government of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) under the “incompetent administration of President Mahama” and to usher in a new era of hope, progress and prosperity under his leadership.
Reviving the memory of Dr Busia
A former General Secretary of the party, Mr Stephen Ntim, who also addressed the rally at the Sunyani Jubilee Park, stated that when the NPP constructed the Jubilee Park in Sunyani, the initial plan was to name it after Dr Kwesi Abrefa Busia, one of the stalwarts of the United Party (UP) tradition that is now the NPP.
To that effect, he said, the bust of Dr Busia was brought to the park but the NDC destroyed the bust and prevented it from being installed.
He said the only way of reviving the memory of Dr Busia was voting out the NDC and bringing in the NPP.
