NPP-Media: Unholy Media Alliance

Former minister for local government, Kwamena Ahwoi has accused the media of what he referred to as an "unholy alliance" between it and the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP). Mr. Ahwoi enumerated a number of issues, which had not been addressed by the Kufuor administration and yet not received any form criticism from the vociferous Ghanaian media, which according to him, was so critical of the former regime of which he was a minister.

According to him, the rule of the current administration, has been characterized by intimidation, unconstitutionality, skewed sense of priorities and abandonment of election promises but the press has refused to comment on these issues.

Among the issues that he claimed had not been addressed by the media is the president’s reference to the opposition as evil forces, the president’s continuous refusal to use the presidential jet, which has been lying idle since the NPP came into office and for which the state is paying huge sums of money, just for the president to use another state money for another aircraft.

He further accused the media for not commenting on the government's immediate appointment of a judge after the Fast Track Court was declared unconstitutional. Mr. Ahwoi noted, "Ghanaian media will have to answer to the people of Ghana where they were when things were going wrong".

His address, which also touched on the state of the economy, asserted that government has accumulated a debt of 15 trillion cedis in its 15 months in office. He said "the cost of living is getting higher and higher, standard of living lower and lower and people are getting poorer and poorer' suggesting that the NDC was a much better government. According to him, few months into the Kufuor administration, the people are yearning for the past.

He alleged that the NPP government is only replicating the policies of the NDC and the difference is that it is being done badly. To him, the way forward for the NDC is social democracy, party discipline, inner party democracy and political voluntarism.

Other speakers at the congress included the party's flagbearer for the 2000 elections, Dr. Tony Aidoo, Minority leader Alban Bagbin, Greater Accra regional chairman of the party Joshua Alabi and founder of the party, Jerry John Rawlings.