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General News of Tuesday, 29 November 2016

Source: The New Statesman

Mahama represents NDC’s dubious nature - NPP

Communications Director - Nana Akomea Communications Director - Nana Akomea

Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Akomea, says the dubious nature of the National Democratic Congress government is typified by President Mahama himself.

According to him, the president’s penchant for lying to Ghanaians has attained unassailable heights, adding that the NPP is not surprised that lies are being continued by the Minister of Communications, Omane Boamah.

This, Nana Akomea added, makes the Mahama government “masters in lies, deception and propaganda.”

The NPP Director of Communications was reacting, through a press release, to an earlier “Meet the Press” session addressed by Omane Boamah.

According to Nana Akomea, President Mahama in 2013 told Ghanaians that the Election Petition had no effect on his government but quickly turned around in 2016 to say the petition had an effect on his governance for a year.

The release stated: “He gave Ghanaians over a dozen dates for Dumsor to be over, including prophesying in church before God. In the event, Ghanaians had to endure Dumsor for four years, and now Dumsor is now an international word for load shedding. He told Ghanaians in 2008 that comparison of development projects was ‘petty’ and ‘exercise in mediocrity’. In 2016, he tells Ghanaians that projects were sure ‘one touch victory’”.

Nana Akomea further disclosed that the deception of President Mahama was again brought to full light when he stated in an interview with the BBC this year that he had never received a bribe but later turned out that he had received a Ford as bribe from a Burkinabe Contractor in 2012.

Turning his attention to the NDC, Nana Akomea revealed that the party in 1999 lied to the IMF/World Bank which led to the country paying a penalty of $32 million.

“In the 2008 campaign season, their lies reached speak. They published bank accounts of NPP stalwarts which turned out to be fabrications. At the parliamentary vetting in 2008, NDC nominee after nominee begged for forgiveness for these lies they had told Ghanaians in 2008.

An NDC deputy minister for information instructed public servants to twist facts and tell lies to help the NDC government. From 1992 up till this year, NDC was the only political party in Ghana that officially had a Propaganda Secretary,” Nana Akomea said.

He added that even though the Minister of Communications claims Nana Akufo-Addo, flagbearer of the NPP, lied about the cost of the Kasoa Interchange and the 2015 presidential diaries, he is yet to tell Ghanaians what value for money audit was done for the Kasoa interchange.

“Omane Boamah denies the costing for the 2015 Presidential diaries, but he doesn't tell Ghanaians the cost. While claiming others are lying, neither Omane Boamah nor the NDC government up till today, over one year after the diaries have been published, told Ghanaians what the cost of the diaries are! So who is lying?” he queried.

Nana Akomea again challenged Omane Boamah to publish the result of the value for money audit done by the Crown Agents Company on the Ridge hospital expansion.

He added: “It is indeed strange that the 600 bed Teaching Hospital at Legon negotiated by the University of Ghana is cheaper than the 400 bed Ridge Hospital expansion. That there was bloating in the cost of the Ridge Hospital expansion is not in doubt.”

Nana Akomea said the President had on a number of occasions contradicted himself and that the NPP finds it laughable that Omane Boamah is touting the achievements of the NDC based on infrastructure.

“As for Omane Boamah's touting of projects, his boss President Mahama in 2008 admitted that the President Kufuor’s NPP government had done ‘wonderful infrastructure ‘. He added however that touting that ‘a government’s achievements is based on infrastructure ‘is ‘petty’ and an ‘exercise of mediocrity’ as ‘every government is supposed to provide infrastructure,‘” he stressed.

Nana Akomea stated that the attempts by the Minister of Communications to make it look like the NPP didn’t do anything when in government is unfounded when it is the NDC that had turned GYEEDA into a vehicle for corruption.

“But the record will show that the NDC's record in job creation has been criminal. The National Youth Employment Programme, a vehicle fashioned to bring relief to young job seekers, was turned into a vehicle for gargantuan corruption and stealing of taxpayers monies, using it to syphon over $100 million dollars of taxpayers monies. No wonder the overwhelming cry of millions of Ghanaian youth today is for jobs, jobs, jobs,” he stated.