CPP most credible alternative for 2008

Accra, Nov. 12, GNA- The National Chairman and Leader of the Conventional People's Party, Dr. Edmund Delle on Saturday said the CPP is the credible alternative party to face the two main political parties boot to boot in the 2008 General election.

He contended that both the National Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) woefully failed Ghanaians and brought untold hardship on them.

Speaking at the National Executive Committee Meeting in Accra he said, " for well over 20 years our governments, the PNDC, NDC and the NPP have pursued socio-economic policies that had been to the detriment of our own people".

Dr Delle noted that the effect of the IMF and World Bank prescribed policies had led unbridled domestic economy and inability of governments to shape the future in accordance with needs and aspirations. "These policies have brought hardship and suffering to our people, their levels of deprivation and poverty have multiplied in several folds thus resulting in dislocations in many aspects of our national life and thereby threatening national cohesion and stability", he stated. He observed that the reason why the party had performed badly in electoral politics since 1992 was because it was fragmented and disunited, saying, "history have it that voters all over the world have rejected fragmented and divided parties."

Dr.Delle told the member to unite and build a strong united front, as at this critical state the unity project is sacrosanct and non-negotiable adding that this will save the party from registering embarrassing results during elections.

"The CPP has a tremendous goodwill from the people therefore, we must prepare adequately to respond to the a nation, bleeding and crying for salvation."

He dwelt on the alliance between CPP and the Peoples National Convention, saying it was imperative for this critical moment and urged the members to throw their weight behind them. Dr Delle said the 2006 budget statement was set within the broad context of structural adjustment programme and therefore was unlikely to bring any significant change in economic policy.

He said in spite of agitations and protestations from civil society and the trade unions about general economic situation and the suffocating effect of petroleum product government had refused to change the direction of economic policy to bring relief to millions of Ghanaians.

The proposal not to tax the minimum wage was a deception in view of the fact that most or all the public sector workers earn above the minimum wage and workers in the informal sector hardly pay taxes. Dr. Delle said the budget was not good for a better future and that it had no room for job creation and was coated with propaganda substance.

He noted that since 2001 government had not been able to achieve single digit inflation claiming that there was no reason to believe that it was in the position of realizing the projected target of a little over 8 per cent next year.

Mr. Dan Lartey, Leader of GCPP in a solidarity message said the breakdown of the CPP was due to the twist and turn of some of the members.

He said the party could only resuscitate if the members eschew their selfish interests, change their attitude and remain sincere and faithful to the broader agenda of the party.

Dr. Tobiga Sintim of the PNC said the hour has come for the Nkrumahist tradition to bring the party to power before they grew old. He said no right thinking person would invest in a splinter party as politics was based on perception and "winability is what everybody yearns for." He gave the assurance that the PNC was ever ready to merge with CPP for victory. Nov. 12 05