Ho, Nov. 29, GNA- Dr Vladimir Antwi-Danso, Dean of Students, University of Ghana, Legon, has expressed disquiet about the unrealistic promises being made by political parties and politicians in their campaign messages.
He said, it was difficult to appreciate how a political party would suggest that when voted into power, it would reduce fuel prices at a time when government was paying unrealistically huge subsidies to maintain cost of petroleum products because of spiralling crude prices. Dr Antwi-Danso made the remark when delivering a paper on the "New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)" at a Workshop for District Chief Executives (DCEs) from the Volta Region in Ho.
Dr Antwi-Danso, who is a member of Convention People's Party (CPP), said references by some politicians to "people sleeping in the open at Malata Market" as epitome of poverty in Ghana could be misleading.
He asked if the raising of the national minimum wage several folds higher than it was currently, as being propagated by a Politician, was economically feasible under current economic circumstances of the country.
Dr Antwi-Danso said the messages of political parties meant they (Parties) had not come to terms with the real problems of the nation or were deliberately misleading the people.
He said Ghana, like many other third world countries, was faced with economic choices it had little control over and politicians were in no position to spring surprises, as they were promising.
Dr Antwi-Danso said the commodity boom, during which African countries had huge foreign reserves to undertake accelerated development had been over since the 70s.
He said currently African countries, including Ghana had to depend on donor support for development as the continent's portion of world trade was only one per cent.
