NDC Gets Tough With State Media

Accra - "We have invited you today first to respond to certain statements made by Hon. Gladys Asmah at a press conference organised by the NPP on Wednesday, May 24, 2000. We would also like to seize the opportunity to make some pertinent observations on the general political scene in the country.

Over a period of time, we have observed a systematic attempt by the opposition to seize control of the state-owned media in addition to the controlling influence they wield over most of the private FM stations as well as private newspapers. The opposition parties supported by their NGO allies have persistently harangued staff of the state-owned media and subjected them to intense psychological pressure as a strategy to take over the state media.

In the process they have even sought to question the Government's right to use the facilities available to explain and inform the Ghanaian public on Government's activities, policies and programmes. Meanwhile, some political parties and fringe organisations which exist only on paper also claim equal airtime with the ruling party that won close to 58% of the votes in the last general election.

As I said, some NGOs and international organisations are giving open encouragement to the opposition's demands forgetting that the VOA in the US, the Deutche Welle in Germany, Radio France International, and even the BBC, to name a few, exist primarily as public service broadcasters to provide the Governments of those countries the means to communicate with their people.

In our view, Hon. Gladys Asmah's despicable utterances featured so extensively on GTV last Wednesday was the culmination of the opposition's efforts to seek to dominate, control and direct the work of the state media.

Earlier on, on Tuesday, May 17, 2000 the NDC had held a press conference to expose serious irregularities in the just-ended voter registration exercise. We presented reports of the involvement of the NPP officials in the fraud at that press conference. GTV in its wisdom or whatever refused to use those aspects of our press conference dealing with our allegations. Yet the very next day or so Messrs. Kwamena Bartels and Jake Obetsebi Lamptey were given lengthy airtime to cast insinuations at NDC officials and even going to the extent of attacking the integrity of the Police Service.

We wish to serve notice that as a party we cannot allow the situation to continue. We will continue to respect the professional competence of the staff of the state-owned media especially GBC. We also recognise that the main opposition parties - not those that exist on paper - must have fair access to the state media. However, we shall also insist and ensure that there are no impediments to the Government's right and obligation to use the state media at all times to put across Government's policies and programmes.

At her press conference, Mrs. Gladys Asmah stated that the NDC has collected more tax revenue than all the past governments. This may be true, given the fact of the length of time we have enjoyed the trust and the confidence of the people, as well as their acceptance of our well designed recovery and development programmes. We have as a party, and during the PNDC era been able to widen the tax net and compelled people who have never paid taxes to do so to enable us provide more water, electricity and good roads.

Mrs. Asmah also referred to the fact that we have enjoyed more donor support than all past governments put together. That is true. The fact is that donors do not lend money to governments and institutions whose integrity is questionable. And so it is a strange twist of logic that Mrs. Asmah ended up at that same press conference alleging that donors have refused to give assistance to Ghana because the government is corrupt. Ghanaians should be spared such illogical and confused reasoning.

Mrs. Asmah should look around the country. She should observe the roads on which she travels, especially the roads to Takoradi, the city she represents in Parliament. These were done with taxes and donor support. All over the region there is evidence of new roads, some completed, others undergoing rehabilitation. All the 110 district capitals and their major towns have all been hooked to the national electricity grid. Over 4,000 communities have been connected to electricity under the various SHEP programmes. These were also done with taxes and donor support.

From three telephones per 1000 in 1992, Ghana now enjoys 30 telephones per 1000 in 1996. Direct telephone lines have increased 300% from 50,000 lines in 1996 to almost 200,000 lines. These were done with taxes and donor support.

We have increased health facilities. Between 1994 and 1999, Government health facilities have increased from 674 to 860. These include teaching hospitals, regional hospitals, district hospitals, polyclinics, clinics and health centres. These structures were built with taxes and donor support.

On the issue of corruption the NDC was the first party in the history of this country to have its leader President Rawlings refer his Ministers to a corruption investigation body, the CHRAJ while in office. Indeed, we have seen to the establishment of a separate investigation body, the Serious Fraud Office. These cannot be the action of a party that has encouraged corruption.

The NDC, using both the internal organs of the party and the state institutions under its control as the party in power, shall continue to fight against corruption not only in its ranks but also where necessary in the bureaucratic structures entrusted with running the state.

The basis of Mrs. Asmah's dishonorable press conference was a statement made in Cape Coast by the First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings on past attempts by the NPP leadership to stop the flow of donor funds and investment into the country. The 31st December Women's Movement has already offered an incisive response to Mrs. Asmah's emotional outburst on TV. We will only add one little point.

Ghanaians should not forget that once upon a time the forebearers of the NPP sent a delegation to the Queen of England to protest against granting independence to Ghana. Add this to the other examples: the appeal to the late President Kennedy not to support the construction of the Akosombo Dam, Dr. Jones Ofori-Atta's appeal to investors to stay away from Ghana, Mr. Kufuor's hostile statements when he visited the Washington offices of the World Bank and the IMF a couple of years ago - and you will know the type of opposition this dear nation has been saddled with.

The NPP has a problem. The problem is Mr. J.A Kufuor their flagbearer. He is prone to making loose statements which we are aware cause great embarrassment to his party. Only recently, without seeking counsel from knowledgeable people, he announced that he will change Ghana's currency from the cedi. To what, we have no clue yet. Significantly, he announced this the week before the Accra ECOWAS Mini-Summit. Apparently, he was unaware of all the efforts being made by ECOWAS to adopt a common currency by year 2003.

Not long after this Mr. Kufuor called for a change in the structure of the Electoral Commission, oblivious perhaps that the structure of the Electoral Commission is an entrenched clause in the Constitution and also that Ghana is not a federal state.

Let me give another example of Mr. Kufuor's loose talk. Several weeks ago, he made a statement that in 1981 the price of a bag of cocoa was ?750 and that the cocoa farmer could buy 50 bags of cement at ?25 per bag that time. This was reported on the front page of the Evening News of Monday, April 3, 2000.

What are the real facts? In 1981 a bag of cocoa fetched a producer price of ?250 and not ?750 as stated by Mr. Kufuor. We do not have the actual price for a bag of cement in 1981. But in 1983, the retail price of a bag of cement was ?160. Even using the 1983 figure it means that in 1981 a bag of cocoa could not even buy two bags of cement. Mr. Kufuor has therefore lied to cocoa farmers and all Ghanaians that in 1981 under the late Dr. Hilla Limann you could buy 50 bags of cement from selling one bag of cocoa.

We are in the year 2000. The NDC Government pays cocoa farmers over ?140,000 per bag. According to Mr. Kufuor a bag of cement sells at ?20,000 in the rural areas. This means a cocoa farmer can now buy seven bags of cement from the price of a bag of cocoa. We dare Mr. Kufuor to challenge this analysis - and if he realises he was wrong will he be a gentleman to apologise for misleading our hard-working cocoa farmers.

During Mr. Kufuor's recent tour of Bibiani he is reported to have made some unguarded statements on mining operations in the area. It is the widely held belief that those statements contributed to the violence that erupted at Bibiani shortly thereafter when galamsey operators went on a rampage leading to the loss of lives and the destruction of properties belonging to Ashanti Goldfields.

Of all Mr. Kufuor's blunders the worst is his reported reference to Prof. Atta Mills and Fantes in a derogatory manner. He has attempted to deny it. And as if to wipe away his sins he got Mrs. Asmah to address a press conference speaking in Fante. Everyone saw through it.

Our advice to Mr. Kufuor is that as politicians we sometimes blunder in the way we speak. He may have made a slip and did not intend it as it came out to be. That being the case he should simply own up and apologise and stop throwing tantrums such as the intemperate letter he published in the Daily Graphic on Saturday, May 27, 2000.

His crude attack on our indefatigable First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings and on our dynamic Madam Faustina Nelson is only worsening the case. The dirty language he used is evidence that Mr. Kufuor is capable of saying anything.

In his desperation he wants to drag our flagbearer into the matter. In his letter to Graphic Mr. Kufuor denies ever making a disparaging remark about the Vice President and says that he respects him. Yet in that same letter he described the NDC of which Prof. Mills is a member as a "bunch of ROGUES and corrupt people".

In 1970s the Progress Party suffered on account of a similar disparaging comment made against the Ewes by Mr. Victor Owusu. In 1995, the former General Secretary of the NPP, Mr. Agyenim Boateng described residents of Zongos as illiterate and ignorant who do not read newspapers. Like Mr. Kufuor, he started by denying the allegation but later accepted his fault. History may be about to repeat itself.

We will now wish to comment on the general political situation in Ghana. The NDC has taken note of the statement of Hon. Kwamena Bartels that, "the forthcoming election will be characterised by bloodshed".

Significantly, this threat of violence came barely a week after the NPP had appended its signature to the "Code of Conduct" adopted by all political parties. We call upon Ghanaians to take note of this.

Recently, some members of the Atta Mills Fan Club were attacked at Konongo after the inaugural ceremony. Quickly the NPP rushed to the press to tell the country that NDC supporters had attacked their members in that town which incidentally is an opposition stronghold.

A week ago in the Western Region an NPP Member of Parliament is reported to have walked into a meeting of a District Security Committee (DISEC) and prevented them from resolving a local chieftaincy dispute. His reason was that the Constitution forbids government from interfering in chieftaincy matters. Obviously he was unconcerned about the wider implications of the frequent breakdown of law and order arising from these chieftaincy disputes.

Earlier on we mentioned the violence that broke out in Bibiani in the aftermath of Mr. Kufuor's visit. Last week Friday, he went round the Makola and Kantamanto markets obviously to galvanise support for the strike action called by the executives of the GUTA. Quite clearly the NPP wants to make this country ungovernable in the run-up to the December election.

We take this opportunity to assure all Ghanaians that the NDC will work hard for peaceful elections. But, we also wish to put on record, that in the event of the NPP carrying out its threat to resort to violence, our party born in the aftermath of militant revolutionary politics, will not play the role of the pacifists it played in 1992 and 1996. In other words, we shall respond appropriately but we hope and pray it will not come to that.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, you have a part to play in the maintenance of peace and stability in our dear country. In this regard, we urge you to be circumspect in the things you publish and broadcast. We must learn from what is happening in other countries in the sub-region."