Don't allow yourselves to be used for violence Bawumia advises northerners, as he storms Upper West

The Vice Presidential candidate of the NPP, Mahamudu Bawumia has advised people of Northern descent not to allow themselves to be used as instruments of violence in the up coming elections.

He said, the situation where some political parties only recognise the presence of northerners and hoodwink them into perpetrating violence, not national development, must cease.

Speaking to a large crowd of party faithfulls and sympathisers who thronged Tanina, Nyowli, Logu Boli, Sing, all in the Wa Central constituency of the Upper West region where is embarking on a five day campaign tour, he said the time has come for northerners to say "enough is enough and that they will not be used by any body to massage their violent purposes'.

Dr Bawumia noted that, the time has come for northerners to clear the 'as for me I'm a northerner, I don"t understand any thing, if you misbehave I will beat you' notion.

Rather, he advised them to take advantage of the capitation grant that provides fee-free education up to the Junior High School level, school feeding programme, National Health Insurance Scheme among other programmes introduced by the Kufuor-led NPP administration to improve their lot and have a meaningful life devoid of violence.

He urged the electorate to vote massively for the NPP because the party has shown that it can deliver its electoral promises and has big, achievable dreams for the nation.

He pledged that an Akufo-Addo government will ensure that zongos are well developed like other residential areas while creating an equal opportunity for all to take advantage of.

According to him, this election is about issues and ideas and not violence. 'Our party detests violence that is why I encourage you to stay away from any body or party that preaches violence', he stressed.

Dr Bawumia, who was on his way from a campaign tour of the Western and Brong Ahafo Regions, reiterated that an Akufo-Addo presidency will do everything within its power to ensure that education up to the secondary level is totally free, as a means of eradicating illiteracy and poverty in the country.

He pointed out that it was only through education that the country could achieve the much talked about middle income status and move on to the status of a first world country.

'Countries like Singapore and South Korea which gained independence within the same period as Ghana, have chalked much successes in their socio-economic lives because they have been able to totally eradicate illiteracy from their system', he observed.

'If  we want to be like them and pride ourselves as pace setter in the sub-region, then we must work hard to reduce and eventually wipe out illiteracy in our country; and an Akufo-Addo led government will do whatever it takes to achieve that', he further stated.

The NPP running mate called on the leadership of all the political parties in the country to educate their supporters on the need to avoid violence and inflammatory talk in the run up to and after the December 7 poll.

The ballot box, he said, should be the ultimate decider of Ghana's fate after the end of the Kufuor administration's term of office on January 6, 2009.