politicsghana.com

Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu has assured the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, that, currently, the Minority Caucus has a strong and formidable front in the legislature.

He said with team spirit and determination, they will be able to secure majority seats in Parliament after this year’s parliamentary elections.

Speaking during the launch of the NDC’s manifesto for the 2020 elections on Monday, September 7, the Tamale South Member of Parliament said: “Today is a very solemn occasion for us but to assure His Excellency President John Mahama and the leadership of the party led by the National Chairman and General Secretary, that your parliamentary caucus remains strong and with the spirit of arising and act, you can be optimistic of a parliamentary majority come January 7, 2021.”

Check This Out: NDC announces Sectoral Spokespersons for its Election 2020 ‘People Manifesto’

He said the manifesto was drafted to meet the needs and aspirations of Ghanaians in general hence his conviction that it will live up to expectation.

Speaking during the launch of the document on Monday, September 7 in Accra, he said: “For the first time in the history of any political party in this country, we are presenting to you a manifesto that was not developed by leaders of the party who have arrogated to themselves the power of thinking for other people.

“We are presenting to you a product of the people’s own thinking which we have put together polished and developed into implementable programmes.

“I am very confident that the age-long problem of underdevelopment for this country is going to be solved once and for all by the People’s Manifesto.

“We asked the people how they would want to see Ghana in the next four years, what country they envisaged to live in in the next four years and how to build that country.”

The General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Johnson Asiedu Nketia has said that the 2020 Manifesto of the NDC is a ‘People Thinking Manifesto’.

The General Secretary made this revelation at the launch of the NDC manifesto at the University of Professional Studies in Accra on Monday, September 7, 2020.

Johnson Nketia said the manifesto was taken from the perspectives of the Ghanaian populace and not that of some few elites and technocrats.

Check This Out: NDC announces Sectoral Spokespersons for its Election 2020 ‘People Manifesto’

According to him, the NDC’s decision to speak with the people from the grassroots level was necessary since the party was coming to government to serve the people.

He admonished claims that going for views from the ordinary Ghanaians means they lack ideas.

Johnson Asiedu recalled the introduction of the 1992 constitution which was people-centred instead of the use of technocrats and lecturers from universities.

Source: PoliticsGhana.com

Former President John Dramani Mahama has said the launch of the 2020 manifesto of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Monday, 7 September 2020, will provide Ghanaians with the answers they have been seeking about why he is running for President again even though he has been there before.

“In a sense, our manifesto will provide the answer, but it will be a collective answer, coming from all the fabulous NDC members and supporters, men and women, who participated in its formulation”, the flagbearer of the NDC said in a statement, adding: “In all honesty, I didn’t take the decision to run for a second term as President neither easily, nor quickly. I didn’t jump into it. I did it out of a sense of urgency, after I began to contemplate more and more thoroughly about our vulnerabilities as a nation”.

Mr Mahama said: “I run for President because I want to leave a legacy: a solid infrastructure, with 100% access for all. With this legacy, we will build a truly developed Ghana, on a par with the advanced nations”.

“I know how to do it, part of it I’ve already accomplished, and since I know how to do it and the current government doesn’t, I feel I have the moral duty to ask for a second term”, he noted.

He added: “This is not about me, it’s about Ghana and Ghanaians”.

Read Mr Mahama’s full pre-manifesto launch statement below:

John Mahama speaks ahead of 2020 Manifesto

My brothers and sisters,

On Monday, we will launch our manifesto for 2020.

Let me take this opportunity to offer some personal reflections on the political substance of this manifesto.

You offered me the humbling chance to serve you from the highest offices in Ghana – first as Vice-President, for four years, and then as President for another four years. For this, I will forever be grateful, and I will fight for your wellbeing, for your hopes and for your rights with all my strength for the rest of my life.

But since I have already been there, why run again? I know many of you ask this question – sometimes openly, sometimes in silence. Why run again? It is a fair question, and it deserves a fair, personal answer.

In a sense, our manifesto will provide the answer, but it will be a collective answer, coming from all the fabulous NDC members and supporters, men and women, who participated in its formulation.

In all honesty, I didn’t take the decision to run for a second term as President neither easily, nor quickly. I didn’t jump into it. I did it out of a sense of urgency, after I began to contemplate more and more thoroughly about our vulnerabilities as a nation.

No country can aspire to become developed; no society can be truly resilient in the face of crisis and adversity without a solid economic and social infrastructure.

To create sustainable and ever-growing prosperity – something we all deserve – it requires building a robust social and economic infrastructure, one that supports creativity, innovation and the production of high value-added products and services.

This is precisely why, during my Presidency, I took aggressive steps to develop and consolidate our healthcare infrastructure, our educational infrastructure, our transport infrastructure and our digital infrastructure. This is the only way to build a resilient nation. Without creating and consolidating a developed infrastructure, no nation can resist global shocks.

Unfortunately, this current government has refused to continue on this path and therefore failed to make our nation less vulnerable and more resilient.

Let me give you just one example: access to electricity. In 2012, 69.2% of Ghanaians had access to electricity. In 2016, when I left office after my first term as President, 79.3% of Ghanaians had access to electricity. A 10 percentage points increase in 4 years. When I left the office, I was confident that a new government will deliver 90%, if not 100% access to electricity in the next four years.

However, the NPP government increased overall access to electricity from 79.3% to only 82.3%, a mere 3 percentage points increase.

It is our sacred mission to turn Ghana into an advanced nation as soon as possible! It is our moral obligation to be bold and to aim for greatness!

“Good enough” is no longer good enough! To prosper and thrive, we need fundamental change! We need to set our standards and expectations far higher than “good enough”! If we settle for “good enough”, we settle for a slow death of our very soul and of our pride.

I run for President because I want to leave a legacy: a solid infrastructure, with 100% access for all. With this legacy, we will build a truly developed Ghana, on a par with the advanced nations.

I know how to do it, part of it I’ve already accomplished, and since I know how to do it and the current government doesn’t, I feel I have the moral duty to ask for a second term.

This is not about me, it’s about Ghana and Ghanaians.

This is what Monday’s manifesto is about.

This is why I encourage all of you to watch the launch ceremony.

God bless Ghana! God bless each and every one of you!

Nigerian business mogul and a staunch supporter of the Mahama administration, Chief Dele Momodu has dismissed suggestions that the deferment of the NDC’s manifesto ahead of the elections may affect the party’s chances.

The week-long delay of the launch of the opposition National Democratic Congress’ manifesto was largely jumped on and became a subject of mockery by the incumbent party, the NPP and several other people.

Among other things, some stakeholders described the postponement of the manifesto as proof that the NDC was not ready to lead the country.

In their defence, however, National Organiser of the NDC, Joshua Akamba, disclosed that the party’s manifesto release was stalled because the council of elders had to agree to all the policies therein.

“we are meeting with the council of elders together with the NEC members to be able to agree on the many policies,” he noted in an interview on Angel FM.

Reacting to the development, Chief Momodu maintained that there was no need to rush to put out the manifesto since it was not a competition.

Citing a similar move by the opposition party in announcing former president Mahama’s Running mate, he noted that he believed the launch of the NDC’s manifesto will create the same stunning effect.

“…there’s no worry. It’s not a competition. It’s the same way people were complaining that he didn’t pick a running mate early…. He took his time and when the vice presidential candidate came out, nobody could fault him. There was wild excitement everywhere, nobody could fault him,” Chief Dele noted in an exclusive interaction with GhanaWeb’s Laud Harris Adu Asare.

“…I’m sure by the time it comes out they will be able to say, it is not just about manifesto; this is what we have done before. You know that we have the track record, when we say we’re going to build road, we build it. When we say we’re going to build hospital we build it… when we say we’re going to build airport, we’ll build it. So that track record, if I were in their shoes I will really hammer on it,” he added.

Meanwhile the National Democratic Congress has indicated that it will outdoor the manifesto on Monday, September 7 after the previous set date of August 28.

National Communications Officer of the party, Sammy Gyamfi intimated that the 2020 manifesto will offer the citizenry policies based on truth and transformation.

“This is a manifesto filled with well thought out and truthful policies and programmes that will be delivered by the former President Mahama and supported by his running mate, Prof. Jane Opoku-Agyeman when elected. So, we the [NDC] are not going to tell lies to the people of this country or make promises we don’t intend to keep,” he noted in an interview with GhanaWeb.