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08.10.2008 NDC

NDC Youth slams ban…on Rawlings, Nunoo-Mensah, others

By William N. Jalulah, Bolgatanga - Ghanaian Chronicle
NDC Youth slams banon Rawlings, Nunoo-Mensah, others
08.10.2008 LISTEN

THE YOUTH wing of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Bolgatanga has condemned the recent imposition of ban on Former President J.J Rawlings and seven other ex-security officers from all military and police installations in the country.

Describing the ban as unnecessary and an affront to the fundamental human rights of the officers, and against the commitment to freedom of movement, speech, justice, probity and accountability, as the preamble of the 1992 constitution states. The youth wing said it was a subterfuge employed by the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) as a cover for the socio-economic hardships that it has inflicted on Ghanaians.

At a press conference in Bolgatanga, the Upper East Regional Youth Organizer of the NDC, Akasoba Clement, said the ban was uncalled for and unwarranted, especially on the ex-security officers who have offered dedicated service to the people of this country.

He contended that the imposition of the ban was meant to create needless panic, anxiety and fear in Ghanaians, in the run-up to the December's polls. “This country is not under any form of insecurity; hence the ban is highly uncalled for”, he maintained.

According to Mr. Akasoba, President Kufour made a similar baseless and unsubstantiated allegation against the ex-President in 2007 bye-election at Offinso-South, and as of today, the President and the National Security outfit are yet to provide evidence.

He said it was now clear that the NPP has adopted the strategy of portraying ex-President Rawlings as a coup maker in order to win the sympathy of the Ghanaian voters, having woefully failed in addressing their needs.

The youth wing challenged the NPP government to come out with credible evidence about their numerous allegations of coup plots. It said, the only security measure the Kufour administration can use to make Ghana safe and peaceful was to “lift the ban on economic hardships, diseases, corruption, injustices and the rule of lies that it has imposed on Ghanaians since 2000”.

It continued that the NPP government has failed to deliver on its promises, and therefore called on all well meaning Ghanaians to ignore what it termed as the “lies of coup threats” by the NPP and vote it out, since they have nothing good to offer Ghanaians.

On peaceful polls in December, the youth urged the police not to be partial in their work, but to firmly deal with any person who falls foul of the law. There should not be any discrimination in terms of party affiliations.

They also called on the Electoral Commission, political parties and all stakeholders in the elections to ensure that fair-play, justice and equality were put in place to forestall any suspicions and ill-feeling in the upcoming elections. The youth also gave the assurance that they were committed to ensuring peaceful and violent-free elections.

A former Upper East Regional Minister in the NDC regime, Mr. Donald Adabire, questioned how the next NPP government would make education from basic to second cycle levels free of charge, as being claimed by its Flagbearer, Nana Akuofo-Addo, when second cycle students in the three regions of the North had to sit at home for six months during the current NPP regime, because their feeding grants were not released, even up till date.

He described some other promises of the NPP as fancied promises, which can never be met, and urged Ghanaians to ignore such promises and vote the NPP out of power, and bring back the NDC.

Other regional executive members of the NDC, including publicity Secretary, Mr. Yeli-oni Robert, took turns to address one issue or the other, with the common refrain been the criticism of the NPP government for the economic hardships in the country.

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