AKUFO-ADDO’S FAVOURITE IN THE NPP CHAIRMANSHIP RACE, BUYS 275 BRAND NEW BUSES FOR CONSTITUENCIES TO INDUCE DELEGATES

Instead of considering the poor and hungry, the bad state of our road, inadequate beds in our hospitals, unemployed nurses picketing monthly at the Ministry of health and other serious challenges facing Ghanaians, President Akufo Addo and his appointees and officials of the Npp don’t think twice about spending money to satisfy their sense of vanity. They do not care about those who spend their day scouring rubbish dumps for scraps to keep body and soul together.

And while millions of Ghanaians are reduced to scavenging for a daily living, it is reported that the President, his appointees and officials of the Npp are spending state funds lavishly on trivialities. Instead of investing state funds including loans contracted by the administration in the name of the people of Ghana in productive areas of the economy and the social sector, they are pouring billions of Cedis into their pockets and their party’s internal political activities.

We should also be touched by the fact that millions of gallons of water are poured into countless swimming pools in mansions built or brought by these officials from monies stolen from our coffers so that they and their families can bask in self satisfaction while the extremely poor farmers and parents plead for just enough to quench their taste.

It is a gross insult to Ghanaians to waste millions of dollars to 275 expensive buses for the 275 constituencies to influence delegates when Ghanaians are desperately screaming for economic redemption.

Mr Freddie Blay, the acting Chairman of the Npp and current board Chairman of GNPC, this week cleared 275 new buses from the port. The buses are going to be distributed to all the constituencies as part of the promises he made to the delegates. He is vying for the chairmanship position and being supported fully by President Akufo Addo.

Sources close to the President revealed that the President personally took interest in the arrangement and directed one Mr Asiedu who is a kingpin in the automobile industry to facilitate the arrangement. According to our source, the Finance Ministry supported the deal and offered the acting Chairman all the assistance he needed. According to one of the aides of the acting Chairman, he has promised each delegate who an amount of Ghc 3,500, a piece of cloth and a mobile phone. Delegates in the farming communities will receive a spraying machine in addition. Ghanaians have never witnessed this expensive internal elections campaign in the annals of our fourth republican politics. According to our sources, the buses were not purchased from a bank loan. Knowing how Ghanaians will react to that reckless move, the acting Chairman and his henchmen settled on the bank loan explanation.

Some Npp supporters and Civil Society Organizations have reacted angrily about the decision and have called on the party to quickly disassociate itself from what they described as “shameful act”. Some civil society organizations have called for full scale investigation into the matter. Some known supporters of Mr Freddie Blay vehemently condemned the act on their social media walls.
One Ernest Owuahene in his article, wrote; “few of us are sympathetic and charitable towards those who are needy. Perhaps the corrosive forces of the time have landed fatal blow on the party’s values and principles. Ghanaians will not forgive us for sanctioning this reckless and inhuman behavior”. Mame Henewaa also wrote; “There will never be justice, honour and dignity for everyone in this party as long as millions of Ghanaians continue to suffer from hunger and poverty while our party leaders spend millions of cedis on unimportant subjects”

Martin Kofi Yiadom Boakye, a known supporter of the Blay campaign wrote; “This is really unfair to the downtrodden. It tells us that our internal elections and personal ambitions are more important that issues affecting millions of Ghanaians. This should not be the case”

Meanwhile, pundits and election analyst have predicted a landslide victory for Mr Blay in the upcoming Npp chairmanship race. The buses for the constituencies, the Ghc 3,500, the spraying machines and the President’s support have had serious influence on the delegates. The President himself has given the delegates assurances through his close allies in the regions.

Sources close to the President disclosed that the President personally donated over Ghc 400 million towards the Blay campaign apart from other assistance he gave his friend. Lawyer Obiri Boahene the acting deputy General Secretary of the Npp, after the cape coast congress, disclosed that the President personally supported the party with an amount of Ghc 50 million. Apart from the 275 buses, our sources hinted that Mr Asiedu and his company are shipping down 20 V8 vehicles for the regional chairmen and some selected regional secretaries of the party.