Sene Begs Nana

THE CHIEFS and people of Sene District have pleaded with the presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, to use his good offices to reverse a decision by the Ghana Education Service (GES) to site the examination centre for Sene candidates of this year's SSCE at Sunyani and Brekum.

The Acting President of Dwan Traditional Area, Nana Adjei Sarpong, who made the call on behalf of his people, asserted that his people were too poor to find means of transport for their wards to travel all the way to the regional capital to write their exams, slated for mid April this year.

He asked the GES to be lenient with them for any offence they might have committed to merit such a severe punishment.

Speaking to some students, DAILY GUIDE gathered that in previous examinations, some malfeasance were detected by the GES and since the occurrence had not been only once, the GES had recommended a change of venue as a stiffer punishment to check the practice which was fast becoming a trade mark of the area.

The chief noted that students from the area could manage the situation if the exams centre was sited at Atebubu.

He also pleaded with government to re-award the contract for the construction of the trunk road from Atebubu to Kwajokrom, claiming that the road had been one of the major headaches of residents and if constructed, would be much pleasing to the people of Kwame Danso and its environs.

In response to the request about the change of venue for the SSCE centre, the Regional Minister, Ignatius Baffour Awuah assured the people that he would do all he could to impress upon the GES to reverse the decision.

However, when the MP for Tain, who has now been nicknamed Joe Bui Danquah, took the floor, he asked the people if they knew the offices of PEACE FM, an Accra-based radio station located at Achimota.

When the people answered in the affirmative, Joe Danquah told them that, that was where they could find their MP, Twumasi Appiah, since that was where his office was now located. He said Twumasi Appiah had refused his invitations to the Castle on several occasions because according to him (Twumasi), he was not welcome there.

The Tain MP told the gathering that there was something more than parliamentary debates which could easily bring them the road they so much desired, and that thing could only be found in the Castle where their MP was scared of going.

Joe Danquah therefore urged the people to vote massively for the NPP parliamentary candidate, Mohammed Abdulai, who could go to the Castle and bring them the road they needed.

For his part, the campaign director of Nana Addo, Dr. Konadu Apraku, was grateful to residents for attending the programme in their numbers, and recalled some years ago when the NPP had come to campaign in Sene and no soul was even prepared to come and listen to their message.

He observed that the massive turnout at the durbar alone was a sign of good things to come, and urged the people to join the new breed of people who were causing positive things to happen to the people of Ghana.

The flag-bearer, Nana Akufo-Addo mentioned the Capitation Grant, School Feeding Programme, NHIS, among others, as some of the social mitigation programmes government had put in place to lessen the burden on citizens.

He assured the people of Sene that good moments were coming so they should stay put, register and vote the NPP into power, saying it was only then would they see the wonders it would work for them.

Nana Addo regretted that Sene had never voted for the NPP because most of its citizens had been deceived that the NPP would send most people of the area, who are of Northern extraction, back to their various home countries. He noted that, that was the biggest lie ever told them, and advised that such liars be given no room to operate.

“As a Zongo boy, neither I nor my party could suffer the people of Zongo to go back to their roots; it will never happen,” he assured them.

He pleaded with the gathering that he needed Mohammed Abdulai in Parliament to work with so they should desist from what had been termed 'skirt and blouse' voting and vote massively for the NPP and its candidates.

The crowd could not disperse without a fable from the Deputy Minister for Energy, Kwame Ampofo Twumasi who said he saw the Holy Prophet Mohammed in his dream the night before. He said Mohammed led him into a house at Kwame Danso where he heard some dogs barking: “Eye Nana O Nana!”, then he heard three female guinea fowls saying, “Nana, Nana, Nana” with some two males affirming, “Eye ampara! Eye ampara!”

He stated that he was therefore not surprised to have seen five guinea fowls at the durbar grounds, noting that if even animals were hailing Nana, how much more people who were seeing and experiencing the good things NPP was bringing to the country.

He added that it was obvious that Nana Akufo-Addo was on his way to the Castle, and called on all to join in the success story.

Earlier before members of the campaign train took their seats, some guinea fowls, as if they were ushers, stood on the red carpet laid in front of the dais, making some obvious sound as though they were saying welcome to Nana and his entourage.

These beautiful spotty creatures refused all attempts to be sent away, and remained at the centre of the gathering till the programme was over.

From Rocklyn Antonio, Kwame Danso