Jirapa, (UWR), April 6, GNA - Former President John Jerry Rawlings has called on Ghanaians to embrace family planning to control population explosion, pointing out that the quality of children would decline and that would affect the future development of the country.

"The challenge I have thrown to the people is a problem in Africa, We don't earn more but we produce more children", he said. Former President Rawlings was addressing a political rally on Sunday at Jirapa to run off the NDC campaign on the bye-election of the Jirapa constituency.

He said Ghana would have been richer if the people had effectively embraced and practiced birth control, pointing out: "Quantity without quality would take us nowhere".

He expressed regret that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration neglected the construction of roads in the north, saying that was a deliberate act to discriminate against the people because they support the NDC.

He said the NPP is a government Ghanaians would not like to see anymore in their lives time and urged the NDC administration to protect the power and mandate the people had given them.

"Let this power and mandate stay in the hands of our people through the arms of justice. Let the people feel the smell of the power we have won through the investigation of the people who have uprooted the tree that was giving us the fruits", he reminded the NDC administration.

Former President Rawling again reminded members of the NDC that they are no more in opposition but are those in power.

"We need to correct or deal with the mistakes of the past to have a discipline society. I don't have to live in a society that cannot distinguish or differentiate something that is bad from good, short from tall and light from darkness", he stressed.

Former President Rawlings thanked Ghanaians for voting the NDC into power and urged them to hold the government in check and not to allow it to decline.