Kufuor rallies nation for all out war against drug menace

Accra, Dec. 21, GNA - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Thursday rallied the nation for an all out war against the drug trade threatening the Ghanaian society. He said all must come together and cooperate with the security agencies to get to the base of the problem and tackle it on all fronts.

President Kufuor was responding to concerns raised by the Council of State about the damaging and far-reaching effects of the drug menace at its quarterly meeting with him at the Castle, Osu. Cocaine and the Dagbon Chieftaincy issue were matters, the Council said, every effort needed to be made to find satisfactory solutions to. He told the Members that what had so far been discovered was just the tip of the iceberg and revealed that just yesterday (Wednesday) a group of drug pushers, lurking behind the respectable front of rice importation, was busted on the Spintex Road with a huge consignment of cocaine. President Kufuor did not give out the names of those involved but said if people could hide behind such fronts to engage in the illicit drug business, it showed how serious the problem was.


On the sticking problem of Dagbon, he asked the parties to show respect for and work with the Road Map they themselves consented to and signed. President Kufuor expressed his eagerness to know the advice and views of the Members on how to effectively tackle those issues. He used the occasion to brief them on a series of important events that would take place in the country next year. These included the hosting of Heads of State and Youth of the World Conference to be attended by the Presidents of Germany; Nigeria and South Africa among others, the African Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA) Summit and the African Union (AU) Meeting.

Touching on Ghana's Golden Jubilee Celebration, President Kufuor said the country's illustrious son, outgoing UN Secretary General Busumuru Kofi Annan, would kick off the celebration with a lecture as a mark of honour for the pride done to the nation by his distinguished service at the United Nations. He said the retiring UN Chief, deserved a hero's welcome by the country. He called on Ghanaians to be awake to the necessity to keep the environment clean and help to get the nation in shape for the Jubilee celebration.


Professor Daniel Adzei Bekoe, Chairman of the Council, in his introductory remarks that touched on the economy, international relations, the society and the law and order situation, commended the Government for the resilience of the economy. He noted that even at a time of load shedding due to electricity supply shortfalls, the economy and the management exercise had ensured that loss of production and of revenue had been kept to a minimum. "We recognise the various achievements, which have enabled this nation to be recognised by the important and economically strong nations of this world."