Spokesperson for ex-President, John Agyekum Kufuor, Frank Agyekum, has said his boss is ever ready to serve Ghana, but the country is not taking advantage of his experience like other countries are.
“As a former head of state, he [President Kufuor] is committed to the development of Ghana and is ready to serve when called upon,” he stated.
Mr. Agyekum was speaking to Adom News about the former president’s recent participation in a donor’s conference in France, where he helped Senegalese President, Macky Sall, to raise more than nine trillion CFA Francs for Senegal.
Mr. Agyekum said the former president is ready to extend a similar gesture to President John Dramani Mahama, but can only do that if he is asked.
“Although I cannot answer to why he is not being consulted on issues, he has always expressed his support for President John Dramani Mahama,” he said.
He recalled how former President Kufuor defied protests by his own party members and attended President Mahama’s swearing-in to show his support.
Mr. Agyekum also wondered why successive governments in Ghana relegate former presidents to the background while other countries continue to benefit from experiences of those former presidents.
Touching on the purpose of the money former President Kufuor helped to raise for Senegal, he said the money was to support a development plan dubbed “Emerging Senegal,” aimed at doubling Senegal’s economic growth over the next 10 years.
Various ministers of President Sall’s government made presentations of their development plans at the conference attended by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the French government, the United States Development Agency, the Department for Foreign International Development of the UK, the African Development Bank and the Kuwaiti Fund among others.
The “Emerging Senegal” programme aims to boost output from agriculture, fisheries and agro- industry, as well as the mining sector and tourism.
It also hopes to make Senegal a logistics hub offering access to West Africa’s market of some 300 million people.