The Volta Youth Wing of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) have paid a courtesy call on the founder of the party H.E. Flt. J.J. Rawlings to make amends past mistakes and use his influence to ensure that the party returns to the path of meritocracy as the 2020 elections beckons.
The Volta Regional Youth Organizer, Mathias Johnson Alagbo (Kabila) who led the delegation during the visit, expressed disapproval to the current trend from leadership of the party to undermine the statutes of the party which are the strong moral principles, accountability, social justice and subject to unscrupulous means to win election.
We join you to express our serious disapproval to the current trend of excessive monetization of our electoral space within our body politics as witnessed in the just ended Regional elections. Your Excellency, the practice of 'sponsors' using money and other materials things to influence outcomes of elections in favour of their proxies they intend to control have tendency to deny credible and capable youth without financial muscles the opportunity to serve our party in an elected office in future. This trend seeks to weaken the party," Kabila said.
Despite the persistent troubles in the party, the Volta Youth Wing promised Rawlings that they would not compromise to the priceless values of the party but would stand firm to sustain the social Democratic philosophy of the NDC.
The Volta Youth Wing also fumed at party leaders who ignore hardworking party officers and award undeserving positions plus opportunities to their family and friends. They agreed that the deadly spectacle of indifference and apathy were partly responsible for the disastrous outcome of the 2016 elections.
Kabila added that the youth further rejected the NDC during 2016 elections because the previous government failed to address the needs and challenges of the youth.
"The years of neglect and lack of attention to the key developmental needs of the region particularly the Eastern corridor roads, jobs, business support and scholarship opportunities for the dedicated youth has led to the declining interest in our party by the aspirational class of our youth today," Kabila to Rawlings.
The delegation humbly pleaded with the founder of the party to activtely guide and support the NDC and its teeming youth in their quest to win elections 2020.
Speaking to the delegation, Rawlings heavily heaped praises and congratulated the party members who breakthrough and kept the values of the party intact. He said, "I hear apart from the cash tried to be doubled, you had fridges, flat screen TV's. To what extent do these people want to destroy the NDC, it's not good enough."
Recollecting a past experience as nuggets of wisdom for the Volta Youth Wing, the former president said, "Many years ago when I was a president, a member of the force fell into the sea and disappeared but I knew we would find him and indeed our people found him. One Navy diving instructor plus a diver from Akosombo hopped into the sea, rough-tough tied current but they were able to locate the plane jeep in the water."
He added, "one day when I was in my house, I saw a young man and I taught I recognized him, he was one of the Navy guys. I said I know you somewhere and he said he was a diver and so on, so I said what are you doing here I expect him to be at his workplace but he said no, because he has been chased out of his workplace because General Amidu do not want such great courageous people in the Navy," Rawlings paused to allow the delegation ponder on the story.
"The spirit of determination has been rejected, integrity have been turned away from the people of this country. The evil ones are so smart that they would be watching out and for this kind of rear courage, people who will die for the NDC for that long, but never give up, keep soldering on with your good works."
The NDC Volta Regional Youth Wing who graced the occasion included the Constituency Youth Organizers and Deputies, TEIN Executives, Youth from advocacy groups and the Regional Youth Organizer and Deputies.