Reform Party holds seminar for constituency organisers

Tema (Greater Accra) - The increasing corruption in the nation can only be halted through honest and good governance, Mr Goosie Tanoh, spokesman for the National Reform Party (NRP) said at Tema on Saturday.

Opening a two-day seminar for constituency organisers in the Greater Accra Region, he cautioned that "if Ghanaians don't ensure good governance, we will see more crimes and the new phenomenon of homelessness".

This is why NRP is telling Ghanaians that, "fence sitting is no instrument for national development", he said.

The reform agenda seeks to mobilise all people for nation building, Mr Tanoh said adding that, "it is the task for reformers to make changes by managing our resources well".

He said, "while we often discuss corruption as a Central government phenomenon, we tend to pay illegal monies or bribes to those who render official services to us, and this is a bad practice, which we must all resist, to enable us build a just society".

Mr Tanoh said that it was unfortunate that Ghanaians have lost confidence in some important democratic structures and added that, "we should not have a society where people prosper through connection, which creates injustice".

"Our acceptance of whom you know is unacceptable. You don't need to know a medical doctor before you go to hospital or a headmaster before you get a vacancy in a school. We should not be made to look like it is criminal to get sick".

Mr Tanoh called on followers of the party to help to organise people in their constituencies to get better services, stressing that we should contribute to the growth of development programmes in our communities such as desalting choked gutters and taking part in communal labour.

"We have to move away from a complaining society to a doing society, where we complain about anything that the President does, after all Ghana does not start from the Castle", he added.

The NRP spokesman said one who complains can feel good that he has voiced out his feelings, however this does not solve the problem, that is why Reform Party does not believe in sensationalism.

Our mission is to enable Ghanaians to ask questions about education, health care, housing policies, motorable roads, social amenities and not to appreciate party colours, flags symbols and slogans.

The party will talk about issues such as jobs for JSS and university graduates, housing, roads, water, health care and the management of the economy and not personalities during the electioneering campaign, Mr Tanoh said.

We should not relate issues only on what the Central government can do, but what the District Assemblies, area and zonal councils could do and called on the NDC to stop the politics of exclusion where qualified people are denied poverty alleviation money.