General News of Wednesday, 7 May 2014

Source: Today Newspaper

NDC has no shame - Mike Ocquaye Jr.

Former Greater Accra Regional Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mike Ocquaye Jr., has launched a blistering attack on the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress, describing it as a “government without shame.”

He could not fathom why the NDC government is bent on grinding the whole country to a halt.

“The posture of the Mahama government is an insult to Ghanaians and it is obvious that the party has no shame,” he fumed.

…How can NDC suggest that we fall on the Heritage Fund for survival,” he stressed.

The former NPP Greater Accra scribe made these observations on Good Morning Ghana, a Metro TV flagship programme.

According to him, what the NDC is good at is wasting state money which, he said, has been the bane of this country.

He also decried the attitude of the ruling government, insisting that, “the government in its 2012 budget used Ghc10 million out of the Heritage Fund for capacity building.

“…they (NDC) have not been able to account for that money. What has the money been used for?” He asked.

He said the government should initiate moves to properly account for every pesewa of the 91 per cent oil proceeds it has accrued rather than draw money from the fund.

Mr. Quaye’s outbursts follow a recent suggestion by the General Secretary of the NDC, Mr. Asiedu Nketia, that it is economically unwise for the country to go out for loans with high interests whiles it has an offshore account sitting idle.

That suggestion by Mr. Asiedu Nketia since then has attracted a lot of condemnations from the public and civil society groups.

Meanwhile, deputy Minister of Interior, James Agalga, who was also on the programme, vehemently defended the position of his general secretary, saying as a citizen of Ghana, Mr. Asiedu Nketia has every right to express his opinion on national issues.

He contended that the establishment of the Heritage Fund was an NDC project and, therefore, when it comes to its disbursement the party has every right to make a suggestion.

“What my general secretary said is just a mere suggestion and I don’t see why people should make a fuss out of this,” he stressed.