Confirmed! Konadu For NDP

Published in Daily Guide on September 27, 2012

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

 

IT’S FINAL! Mr and Mrs Rawlings

It is now confirmed that former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings is behind the formation of the National Democratic Party (NDP), a breakaway party from the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).
The core supporters of the NDP are disgruntled members of the NDC.
The NDP has also rubbished media reports that NDC founder, former President Jerry John Rawlings, would be campaigning for the ruling party, saying that he was in the boat of the breakaway party.
Even though Nana Konadu continues to remain tight-lipped over whether or not she was behind the new party, initial speculations had linked her as the brain behind the NDP without any concrete proof.
However, Mrs Rawlings has been captured on an audio recording conscientising NDP faithful, telling them why they needed to join the new party to chart a new course.
The former First Lady is believed to have made these and other comments during a meeting with NDP sympathisers at the SSNIT Hall in Kumasi when she visited the Ashanti Region somewhere last week.
The NDP presidential hopeful is expected to begin her Brong Ahafo regional tour soon as part of the party’s attempt at winning more souls.
Mrs. Rawlings, who spoke Twi, expressed disappointment in the current leadership of the NDC which she accused of destroying the party they all toiled so much to form.
“You all know that we used our strength and hard work to build the NDC but they have used their strength to collapse it; that is what hurts me sometimes,” she noted.
In that regard, she noted, “If we have come today; we want you to know that we are not following a negative course…that is why we have the dove as our symbol.”  She extolled the virtues of the bird—a sign of peace, unity, togetherness, honesty and closeness.
She asked supporters of the newly formed party to help wrest power from the NDC in the upcoming general elections.
Nana Konadu said, “They say they are a Congress and that everybody is welcome to join; so you can’t discriminate against any person and say that this woman can’t join…”
She therefore implored that “before you retire to bed everyday, I beg all of you to remember to go on your knees and pray for the NDP; so that we become victorious to enable us to come and change the country with good policies for things to be better for you, your children and grandchildren and every Ghanaian.”
She claimed a dove does not begin looking elsewhere upon the death of its male partner.
That, according to Mrs. Rawlings, “signifies something–that we are determined to be faithful to people and an aspect of faithfulness is the reason why I have brought my baby today”. She explained why the party came up with the red, green, white and black umbrella with the eagle on top as the symbol of the NDC, making nonsense the assertions of some individuals who claimed to have brought the idea.
The Rawlings Factor
Meanwhile, a statement issued by the Communications team of the NDP and jointly signed by Dr Hilarius Asiwome Abiwu, Dr David Sunu and Ursula Tagoe, has denied claims by leading members of the NDC that Mr Rawlings had endorsed President John Mahama and would therefore campaign for him in the upcoming elections.
“This is practically impossible, and is only a cheap propaganda by the ruling NDC to use the name of the founder whom they have literally ostracized from the party to energise their inactive campaign machinery,” the statement said.
They talked of loss of integrity and deep-seated corruption in the NDC, wondering whether those were the qualities the NDC wanted Mr Rawlings to be campaigning for.
“It is the candid view of the NDP that the question of which party former President Rawlings will campaign for in the December elections is a foregone conclusion as the core values of the NDP and those of President Rawlings are deeply interlinked,” the statement noted.
Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, deputy Minister of Local Government and Campaign Coordinator of John Mahama 2012, had told the media that Mr Rawlings would lead the NDC campaign, a move the NDP has described as a big joke.
The leadership of the NDP has entreated their numerous supporters and the Ghanaian public to ignore the propaganda schemes of the NDC and be rest assured that President Rawlings would campaign for the NDP for the December elections since “our formation is geared towards restoring those values he loved and remains steadfast to defend and protect”.

NPP Jabs Mahama Over Corruption

Published in Daily Guide on September 26, 2012

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

 

 

Jake Otanka Obetsebi-Lamptey

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) yesterday dissected President John Dramani Mahama, virtually declaring him unfit to hold the high office of president of the land.
The party mentioned a number of stinky deals it said President Mahama had superintended since 2009, saying he lacked the credibility to lead the country, and warning that “a vote for JDM is a vote for hopelessness for the youth and a vote for corruption.”
The brother of President Mahama was particularly singled out by the NPP who cited him in a transaction that smacked of fraud on the contributors of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) pension fund.
A company owned by Ibrahim Mahama, junior brother of the president, Engineers and Planners, was said to have virtually collapsed the Merchant Bank, owned by SSNIT contributors, through over exposure to non-secured loans.
At a press conference in Accra yesterday, Deputy Communications Director of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Yaw Buaben Asamoa raised issues about the circumstances under which Engineers and Planners Limited, owned by Ibrahim Mahama, benefitted from the sale of Merchant Bank Ghana (MBG), a company in which SSNIT contributors owned 98 percent stake, to a South African Bank, FirstRand.
Under the terms of the sale, the FirstRand was required to pay an amount of 746.2 million South African Rand, the equivalent of $91million for a 75 percent stake in Merchant Bank Ghana to expand its presence on the continent in a deal that was approved by the Government of Ghana (GoG).
At the time, Merchant Bank, which was one of the few remaining Ghanaian banks in the country, was said to be reeling under a heavy burden of a GH¢330million debt which was choking the bank to an eventual collapse.
Among the list of companies and individuals that were indebted to the bank was Ibrahim’s Engineers and Planners, owing not less than GH¢57.2m, representing 19.1% of the total debt owed the bank before it was sold out.
Interestingly, much of these loans had been turned into bad debts while the Managing Director of Merchant Bank, who signed off the loans and was sacked for error of judgment, was said to be in the office of President Mahama now as an Advisor, raising eyebrows.
What seemed to baffle the leadership of the NPP was the fact that the transaction excluded some of the loans on the Bank’s balance sheet.
The Issue
Meanwhile, existing shareholders are expected to continue to collect outstanding balances.
For the NPP, what this meant was that “suffering workers of Ghana have been forced to swallow the bad debts incurred by some business people so that those business people can go on enjoying their lives of luxury, including flying around in their private jets.”
This, according to Mr Buaben Asamoa, was because “the pension of Ghanaian workers have been sacrificed to pay off debts that they knew nothing of so that some few people could continue having access to their privileged lives of comfort and opulence.”
Nevertheless, the NPP said they did not wish Ibrahim, the President’s brother, who they described as “the young, very enterprising man” ill, adding, “In fact we celebrate success.”
“When your company falls into bad debt and cannot service its loans and the pension funds of the workers of Ghana are forced by the President, who happens to be your brother, for that pension fund to ring fence and take on your debt, then we have to ask some serious questions.”
In view of this and a host of crucial issues involving the President including his role in the infamous STX Korean housing deal, which ended in a fiasco among others, the NPP as a party believed that President Mahama lacked the integrity to lead the country.
They equally believed a vote for him would be a vote for the sellout of Ghana’s future since “he has nothing to offer to the youth”.

AFAG Calls Off Red Revo Demo

Published in Daily Guide on September 25, 2012

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

 

Henry Asante with Ohene Djan addressing the press conference yesterday

Government stands accused of influencing the police to frustrate the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) from carrying out an intended demonstration originally scheduled for today.
The pressure group indicated its readiness to hold a three-day protest march dubbed ‘Red Revolution,’ which was scheduled to start today, to back home their demands for the Electoral Commission (EC) to back down on its intention to create 45 new constituencies for the December 7 general elections.
They intended to demonstrate on some streets of Accra and later converge at the headquarters of the EC, located at Ridge, where they were scheduled to stay for the three-day period of the demonstration.
However, at a press conference in Accra yesterday, Deputy Chairman of AFAG Henry Asante expressed disappointment in the sudden decision of the police to call off the demonstration. He cited the inability of the police to provide adequate security for demonstrators, as one of the reasons given by the police regarding why the demonstration could not come off.
“The Police which had earlier agreed to and approved our routes invited the leadership of AFAG to a meeting only to renege the agreement reached earlier,” he noted with surprise.
Apart from that, he indicated that, “To demonstrate their seriousness and unpreparedness to guard and protect demonstrators, the police promised to secure an interim injunction to halt the demonstration if we insisted on using the same routes the police had approved only few days back.” This, he said was “indeed mind boggling.”
The pressure group have thus been compelled by circumstances to postpone the demonstration to a yet to be announced date, whilst still holding discussions with the police.
AFAG said, “We do not at this stage want to postulate that there are some orders from above dictating the turn of events as far as our demonstration is concerned.”
Though they believe the powers that be could have had their way today, Mr. Asante insisted that “someday, the majority of Ghanaians will also have their say.”
In view of the development, coupled with what leadership of AFAG claimed to be their commitment to the tenets of peaceful protests, deputy chairman of the group said, “AFAG, in the interest of public good, is forced to announce the postponement for the second time, an intended demonstration, due to orchestration by the powers that be and ably supported by institutions of state to make room for further engagements.”
He however assured Ghanaians that “AFAG is still resolute and would never be perturbed by the orchestrations, frustrations and threats of our detractors.”