Mahama Northern Region tour was a disaster – NPP

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Northern Region has described President John Dramani Mahama’s ‘accounting to the people’ tour of the region as embarrassing to him, indicating that his own people in the region refused to show up in their numbers to welcome him.

According to the party, teachers of the various schools were prevailed upon to order their students to come out and welcome the president, in an attempt to save his image.

The president reportedly ended up waving to empty streets, and not even the sirens from his 40-vehicle motorcade would move the angry and disillusioned people. The students were given no other choice but to abandon their books and come and hail the president.

Even if it was not intended, the desperation to get out the minors to meet the president is a strong recognition that he has lost the trust of the people, noted the NPP. “Perhaps, the president has……decided to catch them young for a future attempt at the presidency because the signs are clear that for 2016 no amount of lies, propaganda, over-priced projects and vote-buying can save John Mahama and his party from defeat,” it posited.

The NPP Communications Director in the region, Mohammed Abdul-Kudus who read the statement on behalf of the party, told DAILY GUIDE that the president had toured and used the tax payer’s money to publish his Green Book, put up big billboards, advertising on TV, radio and on the internet. “The president has failed to account for all the monies that have been appropriated in the guise of putting up projects,” he noted.

AG Report: GH¢6Bn Missing

According to the party, the Auditor General had reported that within a period of 18 months (between 2012 and 2014), under President Mahama, GH¢6 billion of tax payers’ money could not be accounted for. “In dollar terms at the time, we are talking about $2.6 billion.

It does not include items, the costs of which are inflated,” he noted. Mr Abdul-Kudus said less than half of the GH¢6 billion could have provided irrigation for Northern Ghana to guarantee good harvests all year long; and there would still be money to fix all the roads in the SADA areas, provide potable water, fertilizer for our farmers and supply basic consumables needed for the Teaching Hospital to guarantee contemporary medical delivery.

“This is the amount that was either stolen or abused in just 18 months under this NDC government. It does not include the over $30 billion worth of loans contracted by this government.

“The president is aware of this Auditor General report. But he has refused to take action on it. He has refused to discuss it. He has refused to account for the GH¢6 billion of our money that has been stolen or abused. And, yet, he has the courage to call his campaign tour ‘accounting to the people.’”

Commissioning Over-Priced Projects

The NPP Northern Regional Communications Director pointed out that “President John Mahama is campaigning on projects his government has undertaken or commissioned, or has cut sods to commence. But, just like the people of Nigeria told President Jonathan in 2015 when they voted him out decisively, Ghanaians are saying to their president that ‘you cannot spend two to three times more of our money on a project and turn round and expect us to praise you for cheating us.’ In dollar terms alone, roads today are built at two to three times what it cost under President Kufuor and the NPP. This is incredible!

“When a government builds a school at three times what the actual cost should be, it means three schools could have been built instead of one. It means twice as many jobs could have been created for those involved in the construction, and after construction, in recruiting teachers and other school workers. It means more schools in our communities and children would not have to walk too far or pick a vehicle to get to school.”

The party indicated that Dr Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia, an individual without state support, had constructed and commissioned boreholes, mosques and educational facilities for communities in need “without these public fanfare we are seeing in the case of the President of the Republic.

“The biggest investment on record when it comes to water in the Northern Region is the Bi-Water project executed in 2006 at the cost of 45 million (585 trillion old cedis) under the NPP. The impact of this project on lives in the Tamale metropolis and adjoining districts is immense, which has been the biggest contribution in the fight against guinea worm.”

Sod Cutting

Abdul-Kudus said, “The people of the North are not fooled by sod-cutting. What the president did after ignoring the Tamale-Kariga road all this while did not move any votes. It is not lost on us that in nearby Upper East Region, the road between Bolga and Bawku has had sod cutting for its construction twice – first in 2012 and the latest just a week ago – both done close to elections.”

Unemployment, Vote-Buying Schemes

The biggest issue facing the people in the Northern Region today, according to Mr Abdul-Kudus, is the twin-problem of unemployment and lack of income. “With the general election a few months away, men and women of the North can expect all manner of short-term schemes to provide them with some small cash to buy their conscience and their votes. But this will not succeed.”