Upper West NDC demands status of suspended regional minister

The Upper West Regional Communications officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has appealed to President Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo to inform the region about the fate of the suspended regional minister, Mr Sulemana Alhassan.

Mr Issah Kantagyere told journalists that it was unfortunate their Regional Minister was used as a scapegoat for the incessant brutal attacks by New Patriotic party (NPP) vigilante groups on innocent citizens.

He said the group is noted to have attacked the party’s own party people, government officials and vandalised public property across the country since NPP assumed power on 7th January, 2017 but no action was taken against the perpetrators.

“As responsible opposition, we are not enthused about the current state of the Upper West Region without a substantive Regional Minister,” Mr Kantagyere said.

He urged the President to impress on the ruling party leadership to deal decisively with hoodlums in the NPP without fear or favour saying it was sad that the security agencies and the President appeared helpless in protecting innocent, vulnerable and law abiding Ghanaians against the activities of the vigilante groups.

“As much as we agree with President Nana Akuffo Addo, on the use of due process to address this self-inflicted menace, the suspension of our Regional Minister is seen as the use of a “sledge hammer to kill a fly”, he stated.

“Mr President, be reminded that, worse incidences of these attacks have taken place in the immediate past in other regions but not even a messenger was suspended and why Upper West Region,” he quizzed.

He alleged that the President’s action demonstrated some Ghanaians were more Ghanaians than others and called for a conclusive decision on the issue as soon as possible to get the region on track for quicker development transformation.

“We cannot afford to be a “suspended region,” he said: “We are convinced that the speed at which you have cleared your appointees of wrongdoing at the seat of government, the case of our regional minister will not be different.”

We’re into the second year of NPP government, and all the eleven MDAs in the Upper West Region are anxiously waiting for their share of the “one million dollars per Constituency per year”.