Accra, Aug. 5, GNA - Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama, on Saturday debunked the notion that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) had failed to fulfill its 2000 and 2004 electoral promises to the people.
"We have never reneged on our electoral promises, what I believe we have failed to do was to let Ghanaians understand exactly what our promises meant in terms of the time frame to realize tangible personal benefits," Alhaji Mahama stated at the opening session of a three-day conference of the Democratic Union of Africa in Accra.
Centre-Right political party representatives and leaders from Angola, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Mozambique, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Uganda are attending the conference on the general theme: "Africa Moving Forward; Centre-Right Agenda for Change.
The Conference seeks to build institutional capacities of the various centre-right political parties, promote good governance, democracy and sound market economies based on vision and perseverance. Alhaji Mahama acknowledged that in poverty prevalent economy, "a lot is expected of government, it is therefore incumbent upon the party, which formed the Government to explain its ideology as clearly as possible, this is what as a ruling party we have failed to do."
The party's policy was to liberate the energies of the people for the growth of a property owing democracy in the country, with the right to life, freedom and justice, as the principles to which the Government and laws of the land should be dedicated in order specifically to enrich life, property and liberty of each and every citizen, he said. Alhaji Mahama explained that the Positive Change agenda, promised in the 2000 elections was to enshrined tenets of good governance as the bedrock of all efforts to create prosperity and social contentment for the re-building of private sector confidence, human resources development and the maintenance of human right.
To achieve these goals, the Vice President admitted that on assumption of office, the Government had to take certain difficult and unpopular decisions to restore respect for the letter and spirit of the Constitution, and to repeal the criminal libel law.
Against all odds, President John Agyekum Kufuor took a bold and radical decision to opt for the Highly Indebted Poor Country initiative, a decision, which was politically unpopular and attracted tantrum of attack from the opposition.
Alhaji Mahama said with prudent macro-economic measures, the suffocating economy was stabilized and the nation became one of the fastest countries to reach the completion point of the HIPC initiative and enjoyed the benefits of debt relief.
"I am proud to say that as I speak our opponents are scrambling for more than their share of the HIPC benefits that they opposed so vehemently," the Vice President noted.
"The impact was immediate and almost unbelievable, Ghanaians showed their love of true freedom in an unprecedented manner," stressing that "almost overnight, the standards of transparency, accountability and responsiveness went very high, as citizens enjoyed their new found liberation by keeping Government on its toes through the media." The Vice President also mentioned the re-equipping of the security agencies, prudent financial management, public sector accountability and the development of public social infrastructure. The education, transport and health sectors were also revamped.
"Indeed our success has been recognized at international levels with confirmation of total debt relief and access to the Millennium Challenge Account, as well as inclusion in the deliberations of the International Community at the highest levels," Alhaji Mahama stated.
He lamented that in spite of all the achievements, a significant section of the people, continued to lambaste the party and government for failing to fulfill its electoral promises, this was the challenge that the party must overcome.
"If we do not, our opponents would continue to fill the vacuum with vicious propaganda, ruing our efforts down and yet partaking of the hard earned gains," Vice President stated.
Mr Pater Mac Manu, NPP National Chairman said African political parties had a number of peculiar problems - ethnicity, lack of internal democracy, lack of trust of the Electoral Commission and its operations.
Hijacking of political parties by individual financiers and former military rulers, who called the shots, called for the creation of platform for exchange of ideas, share differences for the uplifting of multiparty democracy in Africa.
He explained that it would serve as a springboard for inter-party cooperation among centre-right parties in Africa.
Accra, Aug. 5, GNA - Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama, on Saturday debunked the notion that the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) had failed to fulfill its 2000 and 2004 electoral promises to the people.
"We have never reneged on our electoral promises, what I believe we have failed to do was to let Ghanaians understand exactly what our promises meant in terms of the time frame to realize tangible personal benefits," Alhaji Mahama stated at the opening session of a three-day conference of the Democratic Union of Africa in Accra.
Centre-Right political party representatives and leaders from Angola, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Mozambique, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and Uganda are attending the conference on the general theme: "Africa Moving Forward; Centre-Right Agenda for Change.
The Conference seeks to build institutional capacities of the various centre-right political parties, promote good governance, democracy and sound market economies based on vision and perseverance. Alhaji Mahama acknowledged that in poverty prevalent economy, "a lot is expected of government, it is therefore incumbent upon the party, which formed the Government to explain its ideology as clearly as possible, this is what as a ruling party we have failed to do."
The party's policy was to liberate the energies of the people for the growth of a property owing democracy in the country, with the right to life, freedom and justice, as the principles to which the Government and laws of the land should be dedicated in order specifically to enrich life, property and liberty of each and every citizen, he said. Alhaji Mahama explained that the Positive Change agenda, promised in the 2000 elections was to enshrined tenets of good governance as the bedrock of all efforts to create prosperity and social contentment for the re-building of private sector confidence, human resources development and the maintenance of human right.
To achieve these goals, the Vice President admitted that on assumption of office, the Government had to take certain difficult and unpopular decisions to restore respect for the letter and spirit of the Constitution, and to repeal the criminal libel law.
Against all odds, President John Agyekum Kufuor took a bold and radical decision to opt for the Highly Indebted Poor Country initiative, a decision, which was politically unpopular and attracted tantrum of attack from the opposition.
Alhaji Mahama said with prudent macro-economic measures, the suffocating economy was stabilized and the nation became one of the fastest countries to reach the completion point of the HIPC initiative and enjoyed the benefits of debt relief.
"I am proud to say that as I speak our opponents are scrambling for more than their share of the HIPC benefits that they opposed so vehemently," the Vice President noted.
"The impact was immediate and almost unbelievable, Ghanaians showed their love of true freedom in an unprecedented manner," stressing that "almost overnight, the standards of transparency, accountability and responsiveness went very high, as citizens enjoyed their new found liberation by keeping Government on its toes through the media." The Vice President also mentioned the re-equipping of the security agencies, prudent financial management, public sector accountability and the development of public social infrastructure. The education, transport and health sectors were also revamped.
"Indeed our success has been recognized at international levels with confirmation of total debt relief and access to the Millennium Challenge Account, as well as inclusion in the deliberations of the International Community at the highest levels," Alhaji Mahama stated.
He lamented that in spite of all the achievements, a significant section of the people, continued to lambaste the party and government for failing to fulfill its electoral promises, this was the challenge that the party must overcome.
"If we do not, our opponents would continue to fill the vacuum with vicious propaganda, ruing our efforts down and yet partaking of the hard earned gains," Vice President stated.
Mr Pater Mac Manu, NPP National Chairman said African political parties had a number of peculiar problems - ethnicity, lack of internal democracy, lack of trust of the Electoral Commission and its operations.
Hijacking of political parties by individual financiers and former military rulers, who called the shots, called for the creation of platform for exchange of ideas, share differences for the uplifting of multiparty democracy in Africa.
He explained that it would serve as a springboard for inter-party cooperation among centre-right parties in Africa.
