Funds for poverty alleviation used for politics

Somanya (E/R), Feb. 27, GNA- The MP for Yilo Krobo, Mr Dan Tekpertey, has accused the government of using poverty reduction funds from the Office of the Senior Minister and the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs to lure known supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to join the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the area. He made the allegation at a meeting between a delegation of the National Executive members of the NDC and the Yilo Constituency executives at Somanya on Wednesday, as part of their four-day tour of the Eastern Region.

Mr Tekpertey alleged that such NDC members were made to swear oaths that on receiving the loans, they would join the NPP, saying, "some members of the NDC who succeeded in collecting the loans under those conditions, later came to show me the money as evidence while those with strong hearts refused the loans on grounds of the conditions attached to them".

The Deputy National Women's Organiser of NDC, Hajia Salamatu Kuntey, called on the people to register in their numbers when the voters register is opened to enable them vote the NDC into power in this year's elections.

She cautioned NDC functionaries that the NPP would approach them with money and asked them to collect it and spend "because the money belongs to Ghana and vote wisely for the NDC".

The National Chairman of the party, Dr Obed Asamoah, said the high tax burden, which the NPP had imposed on goods and services were making life unbearable for the citizens and attributed it to the conditions attached to the HIPC initiative.

He said a future NDC government would review the HIPC programme to give some economic relief to Ghanaians.

Dr Asamoah urged the party's functionaries to locate disgruntled members of the NPP who have been disappointed by their government to win them over to NDC.

The National Organiser of the party, Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo said members of the NDC have the courage to mount platforms to appeal to Ghanaians to vote them back into government because they came to serve the country well and had many things to show.

He said it was the NDC government that ensured that all the 110 District capitals in the country were connected to the national grid and connected light to 40,000 towns and villages in the country.

Mr Ofosu-Ampofo said the party was able to provide housing for workers in all the ten regions of the country, adding that, the NPP government's housing project had failed, saying "for three years, the NPP government had not been able to provide any housing units for workers but the only ones they provided were for themselves".

Mr Lee Ocran, National Vice-chairman of NDC, challenged the National Reconciliation Commission to invite Ministers of State serving in the NPP government whose names had been mentioned at the NRC to appear before it.