Government to Make Hajj Less Cumbersome

Vice President Aliu Mahama on Sunday said the government is making effort to eliminate bottlenecks associated with Hajj performance by Ghanaian Muslims.

For this reason, a government delegation was sent to Saudi Arabia recently to make this year's Hajj and subsequent ones more beneficial, affordable and less cumbersome.

In an address read for him at the first anniversary celebration of the

Mfantseman West Constituency branch of the Nasara Club, a wing of the NPP at Saltpond, Alhaji Mahama said government is determined to treat issues concerning Muslims with the same fervour as that of other faiths.

He said the government has recently launched very important initiatives to address the immediate needs of the people.

One such initiative, the Emergency Social Relief Programme, he said, has taken off under which the Central Region would benefit from a six million-dollar package.

Alhaji Mahama said the government has also demonstrated its desire to make secondary and tertiary education affordable by absorbing increases in fees this academic year.

"This should encourage us to send our children to school which we know, will improve our living conditions and ensure sound development of our societies".

He said the "damage done to the country is so huge that only patience and perseverance coupled with prayers, can bring the smiles back to our faces."

Alhaji Abdul Guniya Abdallah, Constituency Secretary of the club, said nine months too short a time within which to fulfil promises made to Ghanaians as compared to the (P)NDC era of about 20 years.

He therefore appealed to Ghanaians, especially those who sincerely think that they helped in bringing the NPP to power, to lower their expectations and exercise restraint.

The Central Regional Secretary of the party, Mr Albert Essuman thanked members of the club for the good work they did which made it possible for the party to win the last general election.

He said the region has already started its 2004 campaign and called on supporters to close their ranks and work harder for the party to win the 2004 elections.