http://www.dailyguideghana.com GHANA’S LATEST AND LEADING NEWS NEWSPAPER, PROVIDING DAILY NEWS COVERAGE OF GHANA Wed, 11 May 2011 12:23:45 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 http://www.dailyguideghana.com/?p=11945 http://www.dailyguideghana.com/?p=11945#comments Wed, 11 May 2011 12:22:14 +0000 Nicholas
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Goosie Tanoh
Former presidential candidate for the National Reform Party (NRP), Mr. Goosie Tanoh has stated that his party will partner the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to ensure a first round victory for President John Evans Atta Mills as they did in the second round of the 2008 elections.
“We intend to align with the [NDC] in 2012 and we intend for President Mills to win a first round victory,” Mr. Tanoh said on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show. Wednesday.
Mr. Goosie Tanoh, a former leading member of the NDC who fell out with former President Rawlings prior to the 2000 General Elections over what he claims was the imposition of the then Vice President Mills on the party however indicated that “for the Reform Party, the NDC represents an ally in a potentially broad progressive front” adding, “in that sense our alliance with the NDC at the moment is a tactical alliance”.
He told host of the programme, Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah that the reason some of them left the NDC to form the NRP in 2000 was not in protest of the personality of President Mills but the circumvention of the democratic process in electing a leader for the party, insisting “It wasn’t the man, it was the process”.
He said the reform party is supporting President Mills because they believe that “realistically” it will take more than just a term for any party to achieve its programmes and that President Mills represents a unifying character who needs to be supported to complete his Better Ghana agenda.
Asked whether the party is now at home with the NDC, Mr Tanoh stressed that “We are home to the extent that we did form an electoral alliance with the NDC for the 2008 elections and in that sense we did it because of the programmes that the NDC advanced and also the very strong character of President Mills who we thought had the capacity and has exhibited so far the capacity to lead this country.”
He nonetheless flatly denied that his party has merged with the NDC.
President Mills’ strong character
According to Mr. Tanoh, the NDC has done a “remarkable job” in stabilizing public finance which he said was in disarray before the government took office, even though he agrees that this has had a negative effect on growth.
He said the NDC government on assuming office, faced similar problems that the NPP faced in 2001. That is, public finances in disarray and poor balance of payment situations, saying “NDC in 2008 came to meet really dramatic deficit situations – 14% deficit of GDP [and] an inflation rate that is spiraling beyond 20%”.
To him, the fact that the deficit has been reduced to around 9 percent and inflation has dropped to a single digit is a strong indication that the government is on course to achieve its fiscal policy goals.
He explained that the character that President Mills has shown since assuming office is one of a strong leader, citing the President’s position on the Ivorian crisis when he stated that he will not contribute troupes in the event of a military action.
“I think that strong people only resort to force as a last alternative and Prof. Mills stood his ground and I respect him for that. That is a strong person… This is a man who was left for dead. Let’s be clear. He was left for dead, he came back, he campaigned, won an election and is running a country that currently is one of the stars of Africa.”
The Rawlings factor
On his views on former President Rawlings’ criticism of the Mills administration, Mr Tanoh said the founder of the NDC – someone he still has tremendous respect for – has legitimate concerns but has failed to use the appropriate mechanisms to address them.
Mr Tanoh said former President Rawlings’ personal relationship with President Mills should have guided him in expressing his views and seeking amicable solutions behind closed doors.
He bemoaned the manner in which the former president has politicized prosecutions and in the process used it as the basis for judging the effectiveness of the Mills administration.
“We must disengage from the manner in which we saw the courts and the political apparatus of the last eight years [where the enactment and enforcement of laws became] a partisan issue. I think that President Mills is wise and being careful not to create this impression,” he said.
He said NDC cannot continue with what he calls the vindictiveness of the erstwhile Kufuor administration which he believes weakened some security institutions with the excuse that they were remnants of a military government.
Mr. Tanoh further stated that he will be surprised if former President Rawlings does not support President Mills after the July Congress ahead of the 2012 elections, as he believes Mr. Rawlings is always going to be a key factor in Ghanaian politics and the internal politicking of the NDC.
Source: Myjoyonline
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Nana Akufo Addo
NANA ADDO Dankwa Akufo-Addo has once again asked the victors and losers in the just-ended primaries of the party across the country, to come together and work for the victory of the New Patriotic Party in 2012.
According to Nana Addo, he was aware of the pain and disappointment that the losers might be suffering after the primaries, assuring that there was still a role they could play to ensure that the NPP returned to government to save Ghanaians from the insensitive National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.
Nana Addo was speaking in Bolgatanga after a meeting with winners and defeated aspirants in the just-ended primaries.
He cautioned the elected parliamentary candidates and the defeated aspirants against any act that could create divisions and wrangling in the party at any level, especially as the party stood a brighter chance of winning the 2012 general election, following the failure of the NDC government to fulfil its campaign promises.
Nana Addo was accompanied by the National Chairman of the Party, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey; the General Secretary, Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie; Chairperson of the Conflict Resolution Committee of the party, Akosua Frema Osei Opare, and other top functionaries.
The team is expected to visit all the regions to meet party faithful, parliamentary candidates and the defeated aspirants, to address all issues that arose after the nationwide primaries which generated some surprises in some constituencies.
Though Nana Addo did not want to comment on the internal wrangling in the NDC in recent times, he said what was happening in the NDC was normal in politics and could be resolved depending on the way it was handled, hence no NPP functionary or sympathizer should see it as a reason to be complacent and stop working towards victory.
He pledged his commitment to the development and promotion of multi-party democracy and called on all political parties that would be contesting in the December 2012 general election to ensure that all processes that would lead to the elections were violent-free and transparent so as to produce credible results that would be acceptable to the majority of Ghanaians.
The Upper East Regional Organiser of the NPP, Yaw Mort, in an interview, was very hopeful that with the level of work and acceptance of the party in the various constituencies in the region, as well as people’s disappointment in the NDC government, Nana Addo stood a greater chance of winning in most of the polling stations, while majority of the parliamentary seats would be won by the New Patriotic Party.
From Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Bolgatanga
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Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings wth her daughters
AS THE clock ticks closer to the much-talked about presidential primaries of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), former first lady Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings has kick-started her campaign.
The President of the 31st December Women’s Movement (DWM) picked up her nomination forms last Tuesday and proceeded with the official launch of her campaign the
following day.
On Sunday Nana Konadu visited Kumasi, the Ashanti regional capital where she took part in activities marking the 61st birthday celebration of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
Saint Osei, a leading member of Nana Konadu’s campaign team told Kessben Fm in Kumasi that her campaign team will swing into real action this week.
He said the team will visit all the 230 constituencies in the country to convince delegates to entrust their mandate to the nation’s longest serving first lady when the ruling party holds its primaries in Sunyani from July 8-10.
Saint Osei noted that the advance team which was sent to do underground work across the country has concluded its work and that it was time for the campaign team to roll into action.
Based on the advance team’s report, the ground was fertile and Nana Konadu was set to record a massive victory in the primaries.
He also said that Mrs. Rawlings’ campaign team was critically studying the vitriolic attacks launched on the former first family by members of President Mills’ campaign team.
When the President picked his nomination forms last Thursday and went ahead to launch his campaign, speaker after speaker including the President and his vice cast insinuations against the former first family.
Mr. Osei indicated that Nana Konadu’s campaign team will formally respond to those insinuations in the same manner they were uttered after carefully examining them.
He emphasized that the team will not take kindly to any insinuations cast on the former first family particularly Nana Konadu and that they will appropriately respond to them.
Sharing a thought on the declaration of support for Mills by some leading members of the ruling party who hitherto were close associates of the Rawlingses, Mr. Osei said they are shameful souls.
Enoch Teye Mensah, Sherry Aryittey and Betty Mould Iddrissu among others, who up till now were lieutenants of the former first family, have all endorsed the candidature of President Mills.
He said he was not surprised about the actions of the aforementioned persons and others since they do not have values and love money than truth.
Before E.T Mensah was given an appointment as employment minister, he consistently indicated that President Mills was not the right man and that he needs to be changed, he alleged.
“If today, he has endorsed the candidature of President Mills because he has been given a position that tells you the kind of person he is,” he pointed out stressing that people of integrity and truth will not go the way of E.T Mensah.
He said most leading members of the Nana Konadu campaign team including himself have been approached with money from the presidency but have rejected it because of their ardent belief in integrity and truth.
Mr. Osei stressed that they were least perturbed about the declaration of support for President Mills saying the delegates who wield the power to elect the party’s next flag bearer have already made up their mind to vote for Nana Konadu.
From Morgan Owusu, Kumasi
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Apraku Lartey, the troubled Tano North DCE
TWO MONTHS after his unanimous confirmation by the members of the Tano North District Assembly in the Brong Ahafo Region, Apraku Lartey, the newly-appointed DCE for the district, has not officially assumed office for strange reasons.
DAILY GUIDE has gathered that controversy has greeted the appointment of the new DCE at the presidency because Apraku Lartey allegedly happens to be a wrong choice.
Following this development, the presidency has reportedly withheld his appointment letter in the quiet which has led to the delay in regularizing his appointment.
According to our sources within the NDC, top government officials in the region used the backdoor to ensure the nomination of Mr. Lartey, which is said to have created some disunity in the NDC in the district.
The troubled DCE, who initially accepted to grant an interview with DAILY GUIDE to explain what was happening to the people, but later refused to talk to us, was confirmed on March 15, 2011 during the inauguration of the assembly, under the supervision of the Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Eric Opoku.
Sources close to the Tano North District Assembly hinted that there had been an intense lobbying at the Castle, the seat of government, to have the DCE accepted by the powers that be by the leadership of the Brong Ahafo Regional Coordinating Council which pushed for his nomination.
The Omanhene of Duayaw Nkwanta Traditional Area, Nana Boakye Tromo III, expressed grave concern over the matter when DAILY GUIDE called on him at his palace recently.
He said since the dismissal of the former DCE, Dominic Owusu Amoako earlier this year by the president, development in the district had been stalled because the government had failed to replace him.
Nana Boakye Tromo said that his council, on May 4, sent a delegation to the Regional Minister, Kwadwo Nyamekye-Marfo, to ask why the government had given the people in the district a raw deal.
“The position of the DCE has been vacant since the previous one was sacked. There is absolutely nothing going on in the district because of the present situation. We are worried and can’t keep quiet over it. We need an explanation from the government,” the chief stated.
Mr. Apraku Lartey has since his confirmation taken full possession of the official vehicle of the assembly, though he does not go to the office to work.
But the Tano North District Coordinating Director, Raymond Gbedoah, sees nothing wrong with it.
He told DAILY GUIDE that though the DCE had not officially assumed duty, the regional minister delegated him to undertake some official duties in the district on his behalf.
He had assured DAILY GUIDE that the President would officially hand over the Instrument of Authority to the DCE to start work last Friday, May 6, but it never materialized.
Meanwhile, some documents in the possession of DAILY GUIDE suggest that there was a general resolution by the NDC Tano North Constituency Executive, Council of Elders, Zonal Coordinators and the Zongo Caucus, to have the President appoint one Mohammed Frimpong, whom they described as a more qualified candidate, as the DCE.
The resolution addressed to the President at the Castle read, “We, the Executives of Tano North Constituency, meeting to deliberate on the appointment of a suitable candidate as Tano North District Chief Executive at this critical moment to steer the affairs of the constituency for electoral victory of the National Democratic Congress in 2012 and for the realization of the Better Ghana Agenda of the party, after critically assessing all the candidates who have presented themselves so far, as well as all other options for efficient District Assembly, now resolve to support and back Mr. Mohammed Frimpong from Yamfo, the candidate with the requisite experience and qualification of party and District Assembly harmonious relationship and development.”
“Accordingly, we undersigned Tano North Constituency Executives humbly request your Excellency to appoint the Applicant, Mr. Mohammed Frimpong as our District Chief Executive for the realization for 2012 election victory,” the resolution stated.
From Fred Tettey Alarti-Amoako, Duayaw Nkwanta
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Dr. Spio Garbrah
A VICE Chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, has finally resigned his position in the party and picked nominations forms to contest the flagbearership slot of the party, ending all lingering speculations.
Spio has also resigned his position as the Chief Executive Officer of the London-based Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO), according to a source from his campaign office.
A Josiah Spio-Garbrah, who confirmed the resignation of both positions to DAILY GUIDE, indicated that Spio would be flying back home from London to outline his vision to NDC delegates who would be attending the party’s congress at Sunyani, the Brong Ahafo Regional capital, from July 8-10, 2011 to elect a flagbearer for the 2012 general elections.
DAILY GUIDE learnt that a delegation, led by Alhaji Seidu Nasiru, yesterday delivered Spio’s resignation letter as NDC Vice Chairperson and picked his forms, beating the deadline for picking of nominations.
The picking of nomination forms for Spio has ended all speculations on whether the former Minister of State and one time Ambassador to the United States under former President Rawlings’ administration will be contesting the presidential primaries or not.
This brings the total number of potential drivers for the proverbial Yutong bus to three, as President Atta Mills and former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings had earlier picked nomination forms to engage in what is expected to be a fierce battle at the governing party’s presidential primaries.
Spio himself had posted a message on his facebook page saying, “As to whether I pick up a nomination form today (Tuesday)…or not will depend on my view of whether if I pick up the forms, I will be contributing to peace in the NDC or not. So peacemaking in the NDC is still my objective.”
He called for the unity of the party, asking rhetorically, “What would be the point of winning an internal NDC battle only to lose the more important war at a national election?”
This will be Spio’s second attempt at the NDC flagbearership slot, having lost with two others, Alhaji Mahama Iddrisu and Mr Eddie Annan in 2006, to President Mills.
He is a former Minister of Communication of the Republic of Ghana and a one-time Ambassador of Ghana to the United States and Mexico.
He also served as Minister of Education, Minister responsible for Mines and Energy and as a member of UNESCO’s Executive Board in Paris.
Before his appointment at the CTO, he was Chief Executive of his own business consulting firm, Spio-Garbrah & Associates, based in Ghana.
As a Minister of Communication of Ghana, from 1997 to 1998, Dr Spio-Garbrah initiated, developed and implemented policies and programmes that supported the increasing convergence of telecommunications, broadcasting, the Internet, publishing, news media and postal services, all of which were under his supervision.
Concurrently, as chairman of the National Communication Authority, he had responsibility for regulating all aspects of the telecom, Internet and broadcasting sectors.
As Education minister from 1998 to 2001, he was credited with the creation of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), which currently mobilizes some $50 million each year from the VAT for educational sector infrastructure and student assistance programmes.
Earlier, he had chaired the Public Education Committee that helped to establish the VAT system in Ghana, which currently nets more than $300 million of additional revenue to support the full range of government expenditures.
By Awudu Mahama
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President John Evans Atta Mills
The continuous silence of government in responding to allegations of earmarking about GH¢90million for the campaign to get President Mills re-elected to lead the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in its upcoming primaries is gradually making Ghanaians believe the claim.
People in his own NDC, especially his opponents in the Konadu camp and the opposition New Patriotic Party (NDC), have already started raising issues about the massive show of wealth and power by President Mills last Thursday when he went to pick nomination forms to contest the party primary, thereby earning the President the nickname ‘Atta Cash’.
So far, the only explanation that has been proffered by close aides to the President for this lavish spending is that he is not the one financing all these but a supposed ‘Get Atta Mills Endorsed’ (GAME) group.
However, the names and identities of the individuals behind GAME are being kept under wraps, thereby raising suspicion that it was Mills himself hiding behind a pseudonym to prosecute his own agenda.
The NPP has openly criticised the level of affluence, profligacy and show of power exhibited by the man who makes claims of abhorring what he himself has always touted as ‘profligate spending.’
President Mills took the entire country by surprise when hordes of party foot-soldiers, Ministers and their deputies, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in droves were mobilized to shore up support for his bid.
Communications Director of the NPP and Member of Parliament for Okaikoi South, Nana Akomea, believes the anxiety of the country on the possible misuse of public funds and abuse of incumbency at these revelations was heightened by the opulence displayed last Thursday, emphasizing that “the NPP said it shares the disgust of many Ghanaians at the show of opulence, profligacy, disregard for public order and time that attended the occasion of President Mills picking up nomination forms.”
Albeit the fact that government business was affected, the entire capital city came to a standstill amidst heavy vehicular traffic under the scorching sun as the President paraded the streets of Accra in a snail-pace moving convertible Toyota V8 vehicle, responding to cheers.
The event was broadcast for over six hours on national television, GTV, with an estimated cost of not less than GH¢18,000 (¢180million) and radio to every Ghanaian home that wished to follow the event of the day.
Apart from accommodation which was provided for those who travelled from both far and near, each of the several party foot-soldiers who attended the event was said to have been handsomely rewarded with cash, notwithstanding subsequent promises that are being made to potential delegates in the various regions and constituencies by national officers of the party, most of who have declared open support for the President.
In a statement issued in Accra yesterday, Nana Akomea expressed dismay at the level to which such opulence and resultant suffering were visited on Accra and its residents just for President Mills to pick up nomination forms since it was not the first time he had picked nomination forms.
This, he said, was evident from the fact that Prof. Mills picked forms for the 2000, 2004 and 2008 elections.
“On none of these occasions was the country subjected to the opulent display and horrible inconvenience in Accra as witnessed last Thursday, 5th May 2011, when the so-called ‘humble’ President J.E.A Mills picked forms to contest his party’s flagbearership race”, he said, asking rhetorically, “What does this do for the admonition that political leaders have to be moderate in keeping our status as a poor developing country?”
The NPP Communications Director believes that if the amount of GH¢90million (over $60million) earmarked for President Mills’s campaign was just for internal party elections, then, according to him, “It is a better Ghana indeed.”
By Charles Takyi-Boadu
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Jerry Rawlings and Prof. John Mills
Victor Smith, Ghana’s Ambassador to the Czech Republic and former aide to ex-President Jerry John Rawlings, has said the revelation of secret tapes purported to be emanating from the home of his former boss is an indication that Mr. Rawlings is spying on President John Evans Atta Mills.
“Why…are you spying on the Presidency? I really want the National Security to sit up then,” he said in a reaction to a revelation that President Mills was caught on tape discussing spending GH¢90million on his re-election bid as NDC flagbearer.
Mr. Smith’s outburst came after Herbert Mensah, the man who calls himself a friend of the Rawlingses, repeated his claims on Adom FM, a Tema-based private radio station yesterday that the camp of President Mills in the NDC flagbearership race was bribing delegates with huge sums of money in his attempt to lead the party for the 2012 general elections.
He said yesterday on Adom FM: “The tapes were brought to us…we listened to those tapes… it had details of other areas including intimidation, including alternative bank account details, naming of persons in government, people in the Castle.
“I do not want to go into detail…I do not want to inflame the situation further than that,” Herbert stated.
Mr. Mensah is saying that former President Rawlings has security tapes that suggest that President Mills has sanctioned GH¢90 million to be used for his campaign to lead the ruling party for a second term.
According to Mr. Mensah, a former Chief Executive Officer of Kumasi Asante Kotoko, he listened to the tapes together with the ex-President and it was clear that the huge amount is going to be used to influence delegates to select the President as the party’s flagbearer and to ensure that the former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings does not succeed in her presidential bid to unseat the President.
“We are hearing of budgets of GH¢90million to ensure that she does not make it…some of the newspapers have started publishing stories of loans being given to women organizers,” Mr. Mensah had told first Peace FM on Monday.
He said everybody knew that if the impending delegates’ congress was free and fair, the former First Lady would win hands down.
“We do not want a candidate who is not a unifier. We need somebody who is capable of bringing the nation together and capable of bringing the party together.”
Immediately the family friend of the Rawlingses hanged the telephone, Victor Smith called into the programme from his Prague-base, accusing the former First Family of working towards the disintegration of the NDC.
“If they are going to allow such things to be put out against our government…security tapes…what is the security tape they are talking about…Are they recording meetings of the President or National Security, who did the recording and made it available to the former President?
“There are issues that we should not allow to lie quietly…They are disturbing the peace of the party…Are we enemies in one party for Herbert to say they have intercepted a security tape?”
Mr. Smith said what Herbert was saying about President Mills sanctioning GH¢90million for his campaign might not be the truth but rather somebody’s imagination, stating, “You put out such dangerous information and when you finish you call for peace and unity in the party.
“We hear so many things about what is going on at the former President’s place. We hear many things about what Mrs. Rawlings is doing. I get a lot of information about the goings-on in that house. We are not out there speaking because we want peace.”
He admitted that what was going on in the ruling NDC was reducing investor confidence because he was being inundated with queries from diplomats about the situation in Ghana.
He said Herbert Mensah was not the Auditor General or the Minister of Finance to determine misuse of public funds after the latter had expressed fears that the GH¢90million purportedly sanctioned by the President for his campaign might be tantamount to misuse of public funds, saying, “he should go to CHRAJ to make his argument.”
Ruling out a possible Konadu victory in the primary, Mr. Smith said, “Mrs. Rawlings is not going to win this election… we stand a good chance of winning 2012 when Prof. Mills is the flagbearer.
“You wonder why former President Rawlings is on the back of the President all this while…You ruled for many years and nobody from your party tried to disrupt your administration…We gave you our fullest support…Why is President Mills going through all that he is going through with the founder and his better half?”
Araba Tagoe, Western Regional Women’s Organizer of the NDC, also called into the programme to accuse Herbert Mensah of fanning troubles in the NDC.
“We know about his deeds. We do not want to expose and disgrace him. He should back off the NDC,” she screamed.
By William Yaw Owusu
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Ekwow Spio-Garbrah
A Vice-Chairman of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah has picked nominations forms to contest the flag-bearership slot of the party.
A delegation of seven tendered in Dr Spio-Garbrah’s resignation letter as Vice-Chair, and picked his forms today, May 10, the deadline for picking of nominations.
A botched attempt was made Monday to pick the forms. The party’s General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia returned Alhaji Seidu Nasiru who was sent to pick the forms, arguing Dr Spio-Garbrah had not resigned his post – a key requirement for party executives wishing to contest the elections.
Dr Spio-Garbrah, who is also the CEO of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) followed that up with a message on his facebook page saying; “As to whether I pick up a nomination form today (Tuesday)…or not will depend on my view of whether if I pick up the forms, I will be contributing to peace in the NDC or not. So peacemaking in the NDC is still my objective.”
“Others have urged me to throw my weight and those of my supporters behind one of the two prospective candidates. Yet others urge that I file my nomination in order to demonstrate my continuing interest in leading the NDC and the good people of Ghana someday. It has been a period for deep reflection, prayer and consultation. In the words of some, if my father and my mother are going through a “political divorce” it is better not to get involved or to support one side against the other. Other supporters, however, have stated that I need to go beyond simply staying neutral in these divorce proceedings, and have encouraged me to continue to pursue the “Peacemaking and Unity” in the NDC that I begun some weeks ago,” he lectured.
The former Communications Minister intimated that the competition within the NDC must not bring the party to its knees. “This is why appeals must continue to be made to all right thinking members of the NDC, especially the Founding Fathers, the Council of Elders, The President and Leader, the National Secretariat, and specific individuals whose voices carry weight within the Party to strive for a negotiated resolution of the current crisis before open warfare is declared. What would be the point of winning an internal NDC battle only to lose the more important war at a national election? It may be recalled that in 2006, a similar attempt at fend-mending was planned between those supporting my campaign and Prof J.E. A. Mills, but this was eventually scuttled, leading to long-term adverse effects.”
This will be Dr Spio-Garbrah’s second attempt at the flag-bearership of the NDC, having lost heavily in 2006 to President Mills. Two others – Alhaji Mahama Iddrisu and Mr Eddie Annan – contested that primary as well. Dr Spio-Garbrah came a distant second.
He is expected in Ghana by Monday next week to launch his campaign and, in the words of his campaign co-ordinator, Alhaji Nasiru, “outline his agenda for the NDC and the country.”
The Member of Parliament for Lower Manya Krobo, Mr Michael Teye Nyaunu who supports Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings to the hilt, however believes Dr Spio-Garbrah may not follow the process through (Spio-Garbrah is viewed as a friend of the Rawlingses).
He maintains if the former Education Minister goes on to battle Mrs Rawlings and President Mills for the flag-bearership of the NDC, it will be ample testimony to the gaping cracks in the party.
The contest in the governing party promises to be an exciting one with Dr Spio-Garbrah joining the fray now.
The party goes to congress on July 8, to elect a presidential candidate for the 2012 elections.
Source: Myjoyonline
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Jake Obetsebi Lamptey
The National Chairman of the Opposition New Patriotic Party, Jake Obetsebi Lamptey, has advised NDC Propaganda Secretary Richard Quashigah, to repent from what he calls the politics of lies and insults he has been engaging in.
On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the May 9 Stadium Disaster which claimed 126 lives, Mr. Quashigah accused the NPP National Chairman who was then Minister of Presidential Affairs in 2001, of not accounting properly for the funds raised from the public to support relatives of the victims.
He suggested that Mr. Obetsebi Lamptey may have used part of the money for his personal gain.
But Mr. Obetsebi Lamptey has rubbished the claim and directed the Propaganda Secretary to acquaint himself of the work that was done and how monies collected were utilized.
He told Citi News Mr. Quashigah is only seeking to deflect attention from the successful coverage that the NPP was receiving from the ongoing “all hands on deck tour.”
He said it was thoughtless on the part of Mr. Quashigah to peddle such falsehood and politicize such a matter on a day when families were mourning their relatives in that disaster.
According to him, all the monies collected after the incident were audited by the Auditor General and handed over to the May 9 Disaster Funds which is being administered by Mr. J.S Addo.
He said the fund managers decided on how the monies were to be disbursed and what support to give the families of the deceased, adding it was decided that “the children should be allowed to have whatever schooling that they could qualify and aspire to without their fathers being there.
Source: Citifmonline
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Mr. Ayisi Boateng
GEORGE AYISI Boateng, a founding member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Ashanti region says it is time for people of Zongo origin to re-direct their commitment and loyalty to the country’s largest opposition party.
He said the NPP which is an offshoot of the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition was a bona fide property of the Zongos.
Speaking in an interview with DAILY GUIDE, Mr. Ayisi Boateng noted that NPP was for the Zongos because a key founding member of the tradition from which the party emanated was a typical Zongo man.
“For the sake of those who did not know, I am telling that them the late Chief Simon Diedong Dombo who was a key founder of our great tradition was a typical Zongo man who contributed immensely to the growth of our tradition,” he stated.
He added that besides Chief Dombo there were other great people from the Zongo who contributed their resources and energies towards the founding of the NPP in 1992.
He said because the NPP has something in common with the Zongo people, it has since 1992 appointed a Zongo man as its running mate.
What was symbolic about this solemn relationship was the appointment of former Vice President Aliu Mahama as running mate in the 2000 elections, he explained
Mr. Ayisi Boateng indicated that the NPP is the only party which has given a glorious opportunity to a Zongo man to occupy the second highest position of the land for eight years.
“We did not only give the vice presidential slot to people from the Zongo but also appointed several Zongo people to key positions in government including ambassadorial appointments,” he pointed out.
The NPP guru said in spite of the overwhelming support the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) enjoys in the Zongo communities, the party has not given their people the opportunity to serve in the highest office in government such as the vice president.
Mr. Ayisi Boateng said the propaganda was enough and that it was high time people from the Zongos came home to the party their forefathers founded with their blood.
He emphasized that the NPP was the only party which has the interest of Zongos at heart and that the fortunes of the people will always be enhanced when the party comes to power.
“We do not hate you or discriminate against you as our opponents in the NDC have made you believe over the years, instead we are your brothers and sisters who have something in common with you,” the NPP stalwart stated.
Mr. Ayisi Boateng said the people should demonstrate their commitment and loyalty to the NPP by voting massively for the party in both the 2012 parliamentary and presidential polls.
From Morgan Owusu, Kumasi
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Goosie Tanoh
Former presidential candidate for the National Reform Party (NRP), Mr. Goosie Tanoh has stated that his party will partner the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to ensure a first round victory for President John Evans Atta Mills as they did in the second round of the 2008 elections.
“We intend to align with the [NDC] in 2012 and we intend for President Mills to win a first round victory,” Mr. Tanoh said on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show. Wednesday.
Mr. Goosie Tanoh, a former leading member of the NDC who fell out with former President Rawlings prior to the 2000 General Elections over what he claims was the imposition of the then Vice President Mills on the party however indicated that “for the Reform Party, the NDC represents an ally in a potentially broad progressive front” adding, “in that sense our alliance with the NDC at the moment is a tactical alliance”.
He told host of the programme, Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah that the reason some of them left the NDC to form the NRP in 2000 was not in protest of the personality of President Mills but the circumvention of the democratic process in electing a leader for the party, insisting “It wasn’t the man, it was the process”.
He said the reform party is supporting President Mills because they believe that “realistically” it will take more than just a term for any party to achieve its programmes and that President Mills represents a unifying character who needs to be supported to complete his Better Ghana agenda.
Asked whether the party is now at home with the NDC, Mr Tanoh stressed that “We are home to the extent that we did form an electoral alliance with the NDC for the 2008 elections and in that sense we did it because of the programmes that the NDC advanced and also the very strong character of President Mills who we thought had the capacity and has exhibited so far the capacity to lead this country.”
He nonetheless flatly denied that his party has merged with the NDC.
President Mills’ strong character
According to Mr. Tanoh, the NDC has done a “remarkable job” in stabilizing public finance which he said was in disarray before the government took office, even though he agrees that this has had a negative effect on growth.
He said the NDC government on assuming office, faced similar problems that the NPP faced in 2001. That is, public finances in disarray and poor balance of payment situations, saying “NDC in 2008 came to meet really dramatic deficit situations – 14% deficit of GDP [and] an inflation rate that is spiraling beyond 20%”.
To him, the fact that the deficit has been reduced to around 9 percent and inflation has dropped to a single digit is a strong indication that the government is on course to achieve its fiscal policy goals.
He explained that the character that President Mills has shown since assuming office is one of a strong leader, citing the President’s position on the Ivorian crisis when he stated that he will not contribute troupes in the event of a military action.
“I think that strong people only resort to force as a last alternative and Prof. Mills stood his ground and I respect him for that. That is a strong person… This is a man who was left for dead. Let’s be clear. He was left for dead, he came back, he campaigned, won an election and is running a country that currently is one of the stars of Africa.”
The Rawlings factor
On his views on former President Rawlings’ criticism of the Mills administration, Mr Tanoh said the founder of the NDC – someone he still has tremendous respect for – has legitimate concerns but has failed to use the appropriate mechanisms to address them.
Mr Tanoh said former President Rawlings’ personal relationship with President Mills should have guided him in expressing his views and seeking amicable solutions behind closed doors.
He bemoaned the manner in which the former president has politicized prosecutions and in the process used it as the basis for judging the effectiveness of the Mills administration.
“We must disengage from the manner in which we saw the courts and the political apparatus of the last eight years [where the enactment and enforcement of laws became] a partisan issue. I think that President Mills is wise and being careful not to create this impression,” he said.
He said NDC cannot continue with what he calls the vindictiveness of the erstwhile Kufuor administration which he believes weakened some security institutions with the excuse that they were remnants of a military government.
Mr. Tanoh further stated that he will be surprised if former President Rawlings does not support President Mills after the July Congress ahead of the 2012 elections, as he believes Mr. Rawlings is always going to be a key factor in Ghanaian politics and the internal politicking of the NDC.
Source: Myjoyonline
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Nana Akufo Addo
NANA ADDO Dankwa Akufo-Addo has once again asked the victors and losers in the just-ended primaries of the party across the country, to come together and work for the victory of the New Patriotic Party in 2012.
According to Nana Addo, he was aware of the pain and disappointment that the losers might be suffering after the primaries, assuring that there was still a role they could play to ensure that the NPP returned to government to save Ghanaians from the insensitive National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.
Nana Addo was speaking in Bolgatanga after a meeting with winners and defeated aspirants in the just-ended primaries.
He cautioned the elected parliamentary candidates and the defeated aspirants against any act that could create divisions and wrangling in the party at any level, especially as the party stood a brighter chance of winning the 2012 general election, following the failure of the NDC government to fulfil its campaign promises.
Nana Addo was accompanied by the National Chairman of the Party, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey; the General Secretary, Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie; Chairperson of the Conflict Resolution Committee of the party, Akosua Frema Osei Opare, and other top functionaries.
The team is expected to visit all the regions to meet party faithful, parliamentary candidates and the defeated aspirants, to address all issues that arose after the nationwide primaries which generated some surprises in some constituencies.
Though Nana Addo did not want to comment on the internal wrangling in the NDC in recent times, he said what was happening in the NDC was normal in politics and could be resolved depending on the way it was handled, hence no NPP functionary or sympathizer should see it as a reason to be complacent and stop working towards victory.
He pledged his commitment to the development and promotion of multi-party democracy and called on all political parties that would be contesting in the December 2012 general election to ensure that all processes that would lead to the elections were violent-free and transparent so as to produce credible results that would be acceptable to the majority of Ghanaians.
The Upper East Regional Organiser of the NPP, Yaw Mort, in an interview, was very hopeful that with the level of work and acceptance of the party in the various constituencies in the region, as well as people’s disappointment in the NDC government, Nana Addo stood a greater chance of winning in most of the polling stations, while majority of the parliamentary seats would be won by the New Patriotic Party.
From Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Bolgatanga
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Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings wth her daughters
AS THE clock ticks closer to the much-talked about presidential primaries of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), former first lady Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings has kick-started her campaign.
The President of the 31st December Women’s Movement (DWM) picked up her nomination forms last Tuesday and proceeded with the official launch of her campaign the
following day.
On Sunday Nana Konadu visited Kumasi, the Ashanti regional capital where she took part in activities marking the 61st birthday celebration of the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
Saint Osei, a leading member of Nana Konadu’s campaign team told Kessben Fm in Kumasi that her campaign team will swing into real action this week.
He said the team will visit all the 230 constituencies in the country to convince delegates to entrust their mandate to the nation’s longest serving first lady when the ruling party holds its primaries in Sunyani from July 8-10.
Saint Osei noted that the advance team which was sent to do underground work across the country has concluded its work and that it was time for the campaign team to roll into action.
Based on the advance team’s report, the ground was fertile and Nana Konadu was set to record a massive victory in the primaries.
He also said that Mrs. Rawlings’ campaign team was critically studying the vitriolic attacks launched on the former first family by members of President Mills’ campaign team.
When the President picked his nomination forms last Thursday and went ahead to launch his campaign, speaker after speaker including the President and his vice cast insinuations against the former first family.
Mr. Osei indicated that Nana Konadu’s campaign team will formally respond to those insinuations in the same manner they were uttered after carefully examining them.
He emphasized that the team will not take kindly to any insinuations cast on the former first family particularly Nana Konadu and that they will appropriately respond to them.
Sharing a thought on the declaration of support for Mills by some leading members of the ruling party who hitherto were close associates of the Rawlingses, Mr. Osei said they are shameful souls.
Enoch Teye Mensah, Sherry Aryittey and Betty Mould Iddrissu among others, who up till now were lieutenants of the former first family, have all endorsed the candidature of President Mills.
He said he was not surprised about the actions of the aforementioned persons and others since they do not have values and love money than truth.
Before E.T Mensah was given an appointment as employment minister, he consistently indicated that President Mills was not the right man and that he needs to be changed, he alleged.
“If today, he has endorsed the candidature of President Mills because he has been given a position that tells you the kind of person he is,” he pointed out stressing that people of integrity and truth will not go the way of E.T Mensah.
He said most leading members of the Nana Konadu campaign team including himself have been approached with money from the presidency but have rejected it because of their ardent belief in integrity and truth.
Mr. Osei stressed that they were least perturbed about the declaration of support for President Mills saying the delegates who wield the power to elect the party’s next flag bearer have already made up their mind to vote for Nana Konadu.
From Morgan Owusu, Kumasi
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Apraku Lartey, the troubled Tano North DCE
TWO MONTHS after his unanimous confirmation by the members of the Tano North District Assembly in the Brong Ahafo Region, Apraku Lartey, the newly-appointed DCE for the district, has not officially assumed office for strange reasons.
DAILY GUIDE has gathered that controversy has greeted the appointment of the new DCE at the presidency because Apraku Lartey allegedly happens to be a wrong choice.
Following this development, the presidency has reportedly withheld his appointment letter in the quiet which has led to the delay in regularizing his appointment.
According to our sources within the NDC, top government officials in the region used the backdoor to ensure the nomination of Mr. Lartey, which is said to have created some disunity in the NDC in the district.
The troubled DCE, who initially accepted to grant an interview with DAILY GUIDE to explain what was happening to the people, but later refused to talk to us, was confirmed on March 15, 2011 during the inauguration of the assembly, under the supervision of the Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Eric Opoku.
Sources close to the Tano North District Assembly hinted that there had been an intense lobbying at the Castle, the seat of government, to have the DCE accepted by the powers that be by the leadership of the Brong Ahafo Regional Coordinating Council which pushed for his nomination.
The Omanhene of Duayaw Nkwanta Traditional Area, Nana Boakye Tromo III, expressed grave concern over the matter when DAILY GUIDE called on him at his palace recently.
He said since the dismissal of the former DCE, Dominic Owusu Amoako earlier this year by the president, development in the district had been stalled because the government had failed to replace him.
Nana Boakye Tromo said that his council, on May 4, sent a delegation to the Regional Minister, Kwadwo Nyamekye-Marfo, to ask why the government had given the people in the district a raw deal.
“The position of the DCE has been vacant since the previous one was sacked. There is absolutely nothing going on in the district because of the present situation. We are worried and can’t keep quiet over it. We need an explanation from the government,” the chief stated.
Mr. Apraku Lartey has since his confirmation taken full possession of the official vehicle of the assembly, though he does not go to the office to work.
But the Tano North District Coordinating Director, Raymond Gbedoah, sees nothing wrong with it.
He told DAILY GUIDE that though the DCE had not officially assumed duty, the regional minister delegated him to undertake some official duties in the district on his behalf.
He had assured DAILY GUIDE that the President would officially hand over the Instrument of Authority to the DCE to start work last Friday, May 6, but it never materialized.
Meanwhile, some documents in the possession of DAILY GUIDE suggest that there was a general resolution by the NDC Tano North Constituency Executive, Council of Elders, Zonal Coordinators and the Zongo Caucus, to have the President appoint one Mohammed Frimpong, whom they described as a more qualified candidate, as the DCE.
The resolution addressed to the President at the Castle read, “We, the Executives of Tano North Constituency, meeting to deliberate on the appointment of a suitable candidate as Tano North District Chief Executive at this critical moment to steer the affairs of the constituency for electoral victory of the National Democratic Congress in 2012 and for the realization of the Better Ghana Agenda of the party, after critically assessing all the candidates who have presented themselves so far, as well as all other options for efficient District Assembly, now resolve to support and back Mr. Mohammed Frimpong from Yamfo, the candidate with the requisite experience and qualification of party and District Assembly harmonious relationship and development.”
“Accordingly, we undersigned Tano North Constituency Executives humbly request your Excellency to appoint the Applicant, Mr. Mohammed Frimpong as our District Chief Executive for the realization for 2012 election victory,” the resolution stated.
From Fred Tettey Alarti-Amoako, Duayaw Nkwanta
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Dr. Spio Garbrah
A VICE Chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, has finally resigned his position in the party and picked nominations forms to contest the flagbearership slot of the party, ending all lingering speculations.
Spio has also resigned his position as the Chief Executive Officer of the London-based Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO), according to a source from his campaign office.
A Josiah Spio-Garbrah, who confirmed the resignation of both positions to DAILY GUIDE, indicated that Spio would be flying back home from London to outline his vision to NDC delegates who would be attending the party’s congress at Sunyani, the Brong Ahafo Regional capital, from July 8-10, 2011 to elect a flagbearer for the 2012 general elections.
DAILY GUIDE learnt that a delegation, led by Alhaji Seidu Nasiru, yesterday delivered Spio’s resignation letter as NDC Vice Chairperson and picked his forms, beating the deadline for picking of nominations.
The picking of nomination forms for Spio has ended all speculations on whether the former Minister of State and one time Ambassador to the United States under former President Rawlings’ administration will be contesting the presidential primaries or not.
This brings the total number of potential drivers for the proverbial Yutong bus to three, as President Atta Mills and former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings had earlier picked nomination forms to engage in what is expected to be a fierce battle at the governing party’s presidential primaries.
Spio himself had posted a message on his facebook page saying, “As to whether I pick up a nomination form today (Tuesday)…or not will depend on my view of whether if I pick up the forms, I will be contributing to peace in the NDC or not. So peacemaking in the NDC is still my objective.”
He called for the unity of the party, asking rhetorically, “What would be the point of winning an internal NDC battle only to lose the more important war at a national election?”
This will be Spio’s second attempt at the NDC flagbearership slot, having lost with two others, Alhaji Mahama Iddrisu and Mr Eddie Annan in 2006, to President Mills.
He is a former Minister of Communication of the Republic of Ghana and a one-time Ambassador of Ghana to the United States and Mexico.
He also served as Minister of Education, Minister responsible for Mines and Energy and as a member of UNESCO’s Executive Board in Paris.
Before his appointment at the CTO, he was Chief Executive of his own business consulting firm, Spio-Garbrah & Associates, based in Ghana.
As a Minister of Communication of Ghana, from 1997 to 1998, Dr Spio-Garbrah initiated, developed and implemented policies and programmes that supported the increasing convergence of telecommunications, broadcasting, the Internet, publishing, news media and postal services, all of which were under his supervision.
Concurrently, as chairman of the National Communication Authority, he had responsibility for regulating all aspects of the telecom, Internet and broadcasting sectors.
As Education minister from 1998 to 2001, he was credited with the creation of the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund), which currently mobilizes some $50 million each year from the VAT for educational sector infrastructure and student assistance programmes.
Earlier, he had chaired the Public Education Committee that helped to establish the VAT system in Ghana, which currently nets more than $300 million of additional revenue to support the full range of government expenditures.
By Awudu Mahama
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President John Evans Atta Mills
The continuous silence of government in responding to allegations of earmarking about GH¢90million for the campaign to get President Mills re-elected to lead the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in its upcoming primaries is gradually making Ghanaians believe the claim.
People in his own NDC, especially his opponents in the Konadu camp and the opposition New Patriotic Party (NDC), have already started raising issues about the massive show of wealth and power by President Mills last Thursday when he went to pick nomination forms to contest the party primary, thereby earning the President the nickname ‘Atta Cash’.
So far, the only explanation that has been proffered by close aides to the President for this lavish spending is that he is not the one financing all these but a supposed ‘Get Atta Mills Endorsed’ (GAME) group.
However, the names and identities of the individuals behind GAME are being kept under wraps, thereby raising suspicion that it was Mills himself hiding behind a pseudonym to prosecute his own agenda.
The NPP has openly criticised the level of affluence, profligacy and show of power exhibited by the man who makes claims of abhorring what he himself has always touted as ‘profligate spending.’
President Mills took the entire country by surprise when hordes of party foot-soldiers, Ministers and their deputies, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in droves were mobilized to shore up support for his bid.
Communications Director of the NPP and Member of Parliament for Okaikoi South, Nana Akomea, believes the anxiety of the country on the possible misuse of public funds and abuse of incumbency at these revelations was heightened by the opulence displayed last Thursday, emphasizing that “the NPP said it shares the disgust of many Ghanaians at the show of opulence, profligacy, disregard for public order and time that attended the occasion of President Mills picking up nomination forms.”
Albeit the fact that government business was affected, the entire capital city came to a standstill amidst heavy vehicular traffic under the scorching sun as the President paraded the streets of Accra in a snail-pace moving convertible Toyota V8 vehicle, responding to cheers.
The event was broadcast for over six hours on national television, GTV, with an estimated cost of not less than GH¢18,000 (¢180million) and radio to every Ghanaian home that wished to follow the event of the day.
Apart from accommodation which was provided for those who travelled from both far and near, each of the several party foot-soldiers who attended the event was said to have been handsomely rewarded with cash, notwithstanding subsequent promises that are being made to potential delegates in the various regions and constituencies by national officers of the party, most of who have declared open support for the President.
In a statement issued in Accra yesterday, Nana Akomea expressed dismay at the level to which such opulence and resultant suffering were visited on Accra and its residents just for President Mills to pick up nomination forms since it was not the first time he had picked nomination forms.
This, he said, was evident from the fact that Prof. Mills picked forms for the 2000, 2004 and 2008 elections.
“On none of these occasions was the country subjected to the opulent display and horrible inconvenience in Accra as witnessed last Thursday, 5th May 2011, when the so-called ‘humble’ President J.E.A Mills picked forms to contest his party’s flagbearership race”, he said, asking rhetorically, “What does this do for the admonition that political leaders have to be moderate in keeping our status as a poor developing country?”
The NPP Communications Director believes that if the amount of GH¢90million (over $60million) earmarked for President Mills’s campaign was just for internal party elections, then, according to him, “It is a better Ghana indeed.”
By Charles Takyi-Boadu
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Jerry Rawlings and Prof. John Mills
Victor Smith, Ghana’s Ambassador to the Czech Republic and former aide to ex-President Jerry John Rawlings, has said the revelation of secret tapes purported to be emanating from the home of his former boss is an indication that Mr. Rawlings is spying on President John Evans Atta Mills.
“Why…are you spying on the Presidency? I really want the National Security to sit up then,” he said in a reaction to a revelation that President Mills was caught on tape discussing spending GH¢90million on his re-election bid as NDC flagbearer.
Mr. Smith’s outburst came after Herbert Mensah, the man who calls himself a friend of the Rawlingses, repeated his claims on Adom FM, a Tema-based private radio station yesterday that the camp of President Mills in the NDC flagbearership race was bribing delegates with huge sums of money in his attempt to lead the party for the 2012 general elections.
He said yesterday on Adom FM: “The tapes were brought to us…we listened to those tapes… it had details of other areas including intimidation, including alternative bank account details, naming of persons in government, people in the Castle.
“I do not want to go into detail…I do not want to inflame the situation further than that,” Herbert stated.
Mr. Mensah is saying that former President Rawlings has security tapes that suggest that President Mills has sanctioned GH¢90 million to be used for his campaign to lead the ruling party for a second term.
According to Mr. Mensah, a former Chief Executive Officer of Kumasi Asante Kotoko, he listened to the tapes together with the ex-President and it was clear that the huge amount is going to be used to influence delegates to select the President as the party’s flagbearer and to ensure that the former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings does not succeed in her presidential bid to unseat the President.
“We are hearing of budgets of GH¢90million to ensure that she does not make it…some of the newspapers have started publishing stories of loans being given to women organizers,” Mr. Mensah had told first Peace FM on Monday.
He said everybody knew that if the impending delegates’ congress was free and fair, the former First Lady would win hands down.
“We do not want a candidate who is not a unifier. We need somebody who is capable of bringing the nation together and capable of bringing the party together.”
Immediately the family friend of the Rawlingses hanged the telephone, Victor Smith called into the programme from his Prague-base, accusing the former First Family of working towards the disintegration of the NDC.
“If they are going to allow such things to be put out against our government…security tapes…what is the security tape they are talking about…Are they recording meetings of the President or National Security, who did the recording and made it available to the former President?
“There are issues that we should not allow to lie quietly…They are disturbing the peace of the party…Are we enemies in one party for Herbert to say they have intercepted a security tape?”
Mr. Smith said what Herbert was saying about President Mills sanctioning GH¢90million for his campaign might not be the truth but rather somebody’s imagination, stating, “You put out such dangerous information and when you finish you call for peace and unity in the party.
“We hear so many things about what is going on at the former President’s place. We hear many things about what Mrs. Rawlings is doing. I get a lot of information about the goings-on in that house. We are not out there speaking because we want peace.”
He admitted that what was going on in the ruling NDC was reducing investor confidence because he was being inundated with queries from diplomats about the situation in Ghana.
He said Herbert Mensah was not the Auditor General or the Minister of Finance to determine misuse of public funds after the latter had expressed fears that the GH¢90million purportedly sanctioned by the President for his campaign might be tantamount to misuse of public funds, saying, “he should go to CHRAJ to make his argument.”
Ruling out a possible Konadu victory in the primary, Mr. Smith said, “Mrs. Rawlings is not going to win this election… we stand a good chance of winning 2012 when Prof. Mills is the flagbearer.
“You wonder why former President Rawlings is on the back of the President all this while…You ruled for many years and nobody from your party tried to disrupt your administration…We gave you our fullest support…Why is President Mills going through all that he is going through with the founder and his better half?”
Araba Tagoe, Western Regional Women’s Organizer of the NDC, also called into the programme to accuse Herbert Mensah of fanning troubles in the NDC.
“We know about his deeds. We do not want to expose and disgrace him. He should back off the NDC,” she screamed.
By William Yaw Owusu
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Ekwow Spio-Garbrah
A Vice-Chairman of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah has picked nominations forms to contest the flag-bearership slot of the party.
A delegation of seven tendered in Dr Spio-Garbrah’s resignation letter as Vice-Chair, and picked his forms today, May 10, the deadline for picking of nominations.
A botched attempt was made Monday to pick the forms. The party’s General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia returned Alhaji Seidu Nasiru who was sent to pick the forms, arguing Dr Spio-Garbrah had not resigned his post – a key requirement for party executives wishing to contest the elections.
Dr Spio-Garbrah, who is also the CEO of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) followed that up with a message on his facebook page saying; “As to whether I pick up a nomination form today (Tuesday)…or not will depend on my view of whether if I pick up the forms, I will be contributing to peace in the NDC or not. So peacemaking in the NDC is still my objective.”
“Others have urged me to throw my weight and those of my supporters behind one of the two prospective candidates. Yet others urge that I file my nomination in order to demonstrate my continuing interest in leading the NDC and the good people of Ghana someday. It has been a period for deep reflection, prayer and consultation. In the words of some, if my father and my mother are going through a “political divorce” it is better not to get involved or to support one side against the other. Other supporters, however, have stated that I need to go beyond simply staying neutral in these divorce proceedings, and have encouraged me to continue to pursue the “Peacemaking and Unity” in the NDC that I begun some weeks ago,” he lectured.
The former Communications Minister intimated that the competition within the NDC must not bring the party to its knees. “This is why appeals must continue to be made to all right thinking members of the NDC, especially the Founding Fathers, the Council of Elders, The President and Leader, the National Secretariat, and specific individuals whose voices carry weight within the Party to strive for a negotiated resolution of the current crisis before open warfare is declared. What would be the point of winning an internal NDC battle only to lose the more important war at a national election? It may be recalled that in 2006, a similar attempt at fend-mending was planned between those supporting my campaign and Prof J.E. A. Mills, but this was eventually scuttled, leading to long-term adverse effects.”
This will be Dr Spio-Garbrah’s second attempt at the flag-bearership of the NDC, having lost heavily in 2006 to President Mills. Two others – Alhaji Mahama Iddrisu and Mr Eddie Annan – contested that primary as well. Dr Spio-Garbrah came a distant second.
He is expected in Ghana by Monday next week to launch his campaign and, in the words of his campaign co-ordinator, Alhaji Nasiru, “outline his agenda for the NDC and the country.”
The Member of Parliament for Lower Manya Krobo, Mr Michael Teye Nyaunu who supports Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings to the hilt, however believes Dr Spio-Garbrah may not follow the process through (Spio-Garbrah is viewed as a friend of the Rawlingses).
He maintains if the former Education Minister goes on to battle Mrs Rawlings and President Mills for the flag-bearership of the NDC, it will be ample testimony to the gaping cracks in the party.
The contest in the governing party promises to be an exciting one with Dr Spio-Garbrah joining the fray now.
The party goes to congress on July 8, to elect a presidential candidate for the 2012 elections.
Source: Myjoyonline
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Jake Obetsebi Lamptey
The National Chairman of the Opposition New Patriotic Party, Jake Obetsebi Lamptey, has advised NDC Propaganda Secretary Richard Quashigah, to repent from what he calls the politics of lies and insults he has been engaging in.
On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the May 9 Stadium Disaster which claimed 126 lives, Mr. Quashigah accused the NPP National Chairman who was then Minister of Presidential Affairs in 2001, of not accounting properly for the funds raised from the public to support relatives of the victims.
He suggested that Mr. Obetsebi Lamptey may have used part of the money for his personal gain.
But Mr. Obetsebi Lamptey has rubbished the claim and directed the Propaganda Secretary to acquaint himself of the work that was done and how monies collected were utilized.
He told Citi News Mr. Quashigah is only seeking to deflect attention from the successful coverage that the NPP was receiving from the ongoing “all hands on deck tour.”
He said it was thoughtless on the part of Mr. Quashigah to peddle such falsehood and politicize such a matter on a day when families were mourning their relatives in that disaster.
According to him, all the monies collected after the incident were audited by the Auditor General and handed over to the May 9 Disaster Funds which is being administered by Mr. J.S Addo.
He said the fund managers decided on how the monies were to be disbursed and what support to give the families of the deceased, adding it was decided that “the children should be allowed to have whatever schooling that they could qualify and aspire to without their fathers being there.
Source: Citifmonline
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Mr. Ayisi Boateng
GEORGE AYISI Boateng, a founding member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Ashanti region says it is time for people of Zongo origin to re-direct their commitment and loyalty to the country’s largest opposition party.
He said the NPP which is an offshoot of the Danquah-Busia-Dombo tradition was a bona fide property of the Zongos.
Speaking in an interview with DAILY GUIDE, Mr. Ayisi Boateng noted that NPP was for the Zongos because a key founding member of the tradition from which the party emanated was a typical Zongo man.
“For the sake of those who did not know, I am telling that them the late Chief Simon Diedong Dombo who was a key founder of our great tradition was a typical Zongo man who contributed immensely to the growth of our tradition,” he stated.
He added that besides Chief Dombo there were other great people from the Zongo who contributed their resources and energies towards the founding of the NPP in 1992.
He said because the NPP has something in common with the Zongo people, it has since 1992 appointed a Zongo man as its running mate.
What was symbolic about this solemn relationship was the appointment of former Vice President Aliu Mahama as running mate in the 2000 elections, he explained
Mr. Ayisi Boateng indicated that the NPP is the only party which has given a glorious opportunity to a Zongo man to occupy the second highest position of the land for eight years.
“We did not only give the vice presidential slot to people from the Zongo but also appointed several Zongo people to key positions in government including ambassadorial appointments,” he pointed out.
The NPP guru said in spite of the overwhelming support the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) enjoys in the Zongo communities, the party has not given their people the opportunity to serve in the highest office in government such as the vice president.
Mr. Ayisi Boateng said the propaganda was enough and that it was high time people from the Zongos came home to the party their forefathers founded with their blood.
He emphasized that the NPP was the only party which has the interest of Zongos at heart and that the fortunes of the people will always be enhanced when the party comes to power.
“We do not hate you or discriminate against you as our opponents in the NDC have made you believe over the years, instead we are your brothers and sisters who have something in common with you,” the NPP stalwart stated.
Mr. Ayisi Boateng said the people should demonstrate their commitment and loyalty to the NPP by voting massively for the party in both the 2012 parliamentary and presidential polls.
From Morgan Owusu, Kumasi
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