NDC to cash in on NPP's goodwill message gaffe

The "Goodwill Message" at the centre of the debate

The National Democratic Congress Member of Parliament for Adenta in Accra, Kojo Adu-Asare is pepping up the party's propaganda secretary to 'scan' and mount billboards of an apparent “printer's devil” contained in a sponsored goodwill message from the New Patriotic Party and its flagbearer for 2012, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to the general public.

The “goodwill message”, a full-page, colour poster of a smiling Nana Addo, published in the Thursday, December 23 edition of the Daily Guide newspaper, has the inscription Hope for the Season and says “Nana Akufo-Addo and The New Patriotic Party (N.P.P.) Extends Season's Greetings to all Ghanaians and friends of Ghana and wish you the very best for the coming year.” It enumerates a number of aspirations of the party including making it possible for every Ghanaian to create prosperity for himself or herself, to make Ghana a safe, peaceful and truly democratic environment, and to bring back to Ghana, a strong decisive, and compassionate leadership of integrity and competence.

It however continues “We will not continue with our efforts to provide affordable, quality healthcare for all and to give free, quality education and skills for jobs to every child or youth. We are the party that can fix it. We are the NPP.”

It is this last part of the message that is threatening to discomfort the NPP and its flagbearer.

On Asempa FM's Ekosii Sen Thursday, Kojo Adu-Asare will not agree with suggestions that there was an error in the statement, insisting that the NPP was only being true to type, for “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.”

He said it cannot be a typographical error for the statement to include an emphatic word like “not”, which must be underlined on the billboards he proposed to be mounted throughout the country to tell the electorate the real NPP, emphasizing that it amply demonstrates the mindset of the NPP.

It turned out the MP's prompting was a belated one, for the NDC's Propaganda Secretary had already hit town with the message in a statement he issued under the headline;

NANA AKUFO-ADDO & NPP REVEAL TRUE COLOURS ON NATIONAL ISSUES.

Said he; “The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has taken note of the NPP Flagbearer, Nana Akufo Addo's Christmas greetings to the good people of Ghana as captured on the second page of the Thursday, December 23, 2010 edition of the Daily Guide Newspaper. In the said message, Nana Akufo Addo who hopes to be president of Ghana though it is most unlikely, emphatically stated that he and the NPP, apart from possibly creating property for individuals in the ever-expanding Ghanaian economy 'will not continue' with 'efforts to provide affordable, quality healthcare for all and to give free quality education and skills for jobs to every child or youth'.

“Though the NDC in the name of God is convinced that Nana Akufo Addo and the NPP would never see power in 2012, we are incensed by such unpatriotic comments from a man who aspires to the highest office of the land in view of the fact that affordable quality health care, education and skills for jobs are some of the crucial needs of our people which the Atta Mills-led government is tirelessly providing.

“Having served this notice, Ghanaians must be wary of Nana Akufo Addo and the NPP since they do not consider issues such as healthcare, education and human resource development as important, though Ghanaians principally hold these dear.

“We in the NDC in wishing Ghanaians well during this festive occasion assure all that the NDC-led government would not relent or shirk its responsibility in meeting the expectations of the Ghanaian people,” the statement concluded.