Young Professionals Launch Was A Success

This contains a summary of speeches delivered on the occasion of the launching of Young Professionals at the University of Professional Studies (UPSA) on Wednesday 13 April, 2016.

The submissions of the various dignitaries are captured in summary under their appropriate names to give readers an appreciation of the happenings on the day.

A great level of appreciation to all who made this event a success especially the Guest Speaker, Vice President Kwesi Amissah Arthur.

Opening Address by John Terry:

The President for TEIN UPSA welcome all into UPSA for the Young Professionals launch. In his address, he highlighted the unifier we see in His Excellency John Dramani Mahama.

According to him, while others are fighting and dismissing people, the president is bringing his party together which marks the difference.

Purpose of gathering by Lawrencia Abena Wurah, President YP:

The President of Young Professionals appreciated greatly, the presence of the Vice President His Excellency Amissah Arthur and indicated that his presence had driven home the love for the party and for individuals in the NDC.

She revealed that Young Professionals is a group of young men and women who have chartered carrier paths who believe in the ideals of the NDC and the quality leadership exhibited by His Excellencies John Dramani Mahama and Amissah Arthur, and who are ready to deploy across the country to campaign for the party and government.

She noted that the NDC is a party that is for all. According to her, the presence of young men and women in position of leadership in the NDC is an indication of space for all in the party. Young professionals are in to get the work done as the group shall get to the homes, and schools to get the achievements and the message of the NDC and government across.

Edudzi Tameklo:
On his part, the young lawyer made a clear distinction between the choices available for the Ghanaian in the 2016 elections. According to him, the choice is between progress and retrogression. He posits that the president is offering to Ghanaians what is called servant leadership. He reiterated the need for the involvement of the young professionals in the 2016 elections including taking tasks as polling agents on the day of election.

He calls for the need to get people who have just turned 18 to register as the Electoral Commission opens the voters register for limited registration. He added that all need to be part of the decision making process on November 7th.

He again added that the NDC embraces all tribes within its folds and would not say people from resource regions should be the only people to lead the party and eventually this country.

He concluded on the need to do a leadership comparison between the NDC candidate and that of the NPP. According to him, John Mahama is not hiding behind the scenes and masterminding the suspension of any body and for that matter, has shown leadership of difference which demands a second term.

Hon. Joyce Bawa:
In what appears the shortest but powerful submission, the Honourable Deputy Minister for Transport captured that the efforts of government has led to transformation, progress and development and above all, changing the lives of Ghanaians.

She noted that our responsibility is to go back to our communities and educate as well as sensitise our people on their choices in the November 7th elections.

She concluded, “we cannot afford to vote for all die be die, we cannot afford to vote for yɛn Akanfo”

Ambassador Zita Okaikoi:
“When you talk to them, they say they want change, but when I look around, I see change happening”. These were her opening remarks

According to her government has expanded access to education, access to health, access to quality roads. For this reason, she stated that Ghana does not need change, but, rather, needs continuity.
She reiterated that as former president John Agyekum Kufour said, it is better to remain a messenger in a ruling party than to remain a general secretary of a party in opposition. She admonished all to work hard to retain the NDC in power come November 7th.

Hon. Aquinas Quansah:
On his part, he opined, that the young people of the NDC are the future of the NDC. He was enthusiastic on the enthusiasm he sees around whenever he is engaging young men and women of the NDC.
He says the campaign must be taken to the doorsteps of the people.
He defined a room to room campaign for the NDC in 2016. He expressed joy in the glee with which he see students display the colours of the NDC wherever they go unlike was in the past.

Sidii Abubakar:
The Youth Organizer clearly delivered the blessings of the party from the top to Young Professionals. The General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia according to him, would have been at the launch, but for other engagements.

He admitted the concept of Young Professionals is lacking in the party.
He was however quick to add, that, the General secretary advised that the concept must not be kept only on paper and on social media but must be taken to the grounds.
He indicated that work on the Eastern Corridor road is ongoing and the people of Ghana would be embarking on a suicide mission if they make a mistake to truncate the progress they had activated in John Dramani Mahama.

He called on the president to expedite action in tackling the unemployment situation in its entirety in his second term.
He stated that the NDC is the only party that gives opportunity to all, and that if it were another party, he would not have gotten the chance to lead the youth wing of the party.

He charged the enthusiastic audience to show their capabilities and talents for the party, and they shall be given the chance at all times.

He concluded on the need to eschew complacency as we head into the elections to enable the party widen the gap of victory.

HE Amissah Arthur:
The Guest Speaker of the occasion, Vice President Amissah Arthur, recounted the contributions and achievements of young men in the world from Jesus, to the likes of Kwame Nkrumah, to Jerry Rawlings, Steve Jobs and many others. He drove home the importance of the youth in this country and the need to focus on the youth based on a historical perspective. He posits that the youth have energies that needs to be well directed appropriately.

He outlined the importance of young professionals as people who can think and solve problems. He added that professionals have a very important responsibility to leadership. He emphasised the need to conquer fear which would make one ready for leadership.

He added that leadership is not just a title but a lifestyle.

He further identified some of the responsibilities of young professionals in NDC as: use of knowledge to identify problems and tell what should be done, providing feedback on course of action taken, as well as give suggestions to how to solve problems

He stated that social transformation is taking place enabling progress to happen. According to him, some of the transformation are forced on us by global developments.

He posits that technology is changing and that, we cannot use solutions from the past to solve the problems of today.

On employment, he noted that government alone cannot provide all the jobs needed to end unemployment and that, government is creating the enabling environment for the private sector to equally thrive.

He identified entrepreneurship as an area that must be of focus for Young Professionals going forward.

He however took the demand by the Youth Orgsnizer to focus the next term of John Mahama as a term for tackling unemployment to enable people improve upon their livelihood.

Young Professionals were tasked by the Vice President to develop programs that would create jobs for the people to tackle the rising unemployment problem in the country.

He equally noted a sharp difference between the NDC and the NPP on the basis of ideology. According to him, NPP is for self while the NDC is for community. Property owning democracy against societal development for all is the difference between the two parties, he noted.

He charged Young Professionals not to be derailed from the love for fellow humans, but to work for the interest of all humans.

He drove the point that the actions of the Young Professionals must always reflect the image of the NDC.

He took the opportunity to launch Young Professionals.

Chairman for the occasion, Honourable Alhaji Amadu Sorogho:
He was proud UPSA has always been a breeding ground for good things. He blessed the Young Professionals and charged them to go into the wilderness and win souls.

He recalled his difficult moments and how the NDC did not look at his background but gave him the opportunity and today, he is a member of parliament; the reasons for which the NDC and JM must be maintained

Signed:
Stephen Kwabena Attuh
Communications, Young Professionals – 0243718353