Nana Akuffo Addo optimistic about biometric registration
The Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo, has expressed optimism that, the concerns raised by the party in the biometric registration process would be addressed in earnest.
He said the biometric registration would enhance the quality of elections in the country, prevent multiple voting and avert potential conflict after the 2012 polls.
Addressing a press conference in Takoradi on Monday after a nine-day “listening tour” of the Western Region, Nana Akuffo Addo said the current state of the biometric voting system is vague and hoped that, the concerns put forward by the NPP and Inter-party Advisory Committee (IPAC) would be addressed by the EC as soon as possible.
He said the electoral system in Ghana had gone through improvement since 1992 and there was the need for continuous perfection of the electoral system.
Nana Addo said elections have become an integral part of our lives and we must avoid raising the political temperature of the nation whenever there is a national election adding that “elections should not be a threat to the survival of the nation”.
He said the democratic dispensation had brought economic and political stability in the country and we must sustain and protect our fledgling democracy and stop touting that Ghana would go the way of other warring African countries.
Nana Akuffo Addo said his interaction with the people revealed that, they are not happy with selective mass spraying of cocoa farms.
He said the complaints he received were that, the sprayers sprayed the farms of cocoa farmers who were sympathetic towards the ruling NDC and said this did not augur well for our economy.
Nana Akuffo Addo said the people were unhappy with the non-availability of fertilizers whiles only few people had access to the scarce commodity and urged government to make more fertilizers available for the farmers.
He said “even though we have discovered oil in commercial quantities, cocoa will continue to be an integral part of our economy and we must support every cocoa farmer to produce quality cocoa”.
Nana Akuffo Addo said the resources delivered from the region was not commensurate with the infrastructure development in the region, adding that the region would be a critical part of his administration when he gets the mandate of the people to govern the nation.
He said when given the nod to govern the nation, the oil revenue would be used judiciously for industrial transformation of the Region.
He appealed to the youth to acquire employable skills that would enable them to secure jobs with the oil companies adding that if the oilfield is left in the hands of the foreigners that could create resentment among the populace and breed conflict.
Nana Akuffo Addo called for the revamping of the railway sector to boost the economy and said it is the hope of the people that the government’s intention of securing Chinese loan would be materialized.
Source: GNA