The Convention Peoples Party; why we believe in the party today.

Visit- www.cppuk.org, www.nduom08.com or www.betterghana.nett for historical facts about the CPP.

The modern CPP is the party with inclinations towards welfare for all Ghanaians, their jobs, their competence, living conditions, environment and general security issues. Kwame Nkrumah left a legacy for all Ghanaians who genuinely care about welfare and wellbeing amongst all in Ghana.

Today, countries with the same mindset are well-to-do and the gap in their countries between the rich and poor is narrowed. We believe in the Ghanaian, and today we are here to unite Ghana and help build a democratic, prosperous Ghana based on Kwame Nkrumah’s dream of freedom, equality and respect, social justice, peace and development and that no Ghanaian is left behind.

Almost everywhere around the world the debate is raging amongst economists as to how best market forces and social welfare security nets can be combined. The answer to this question lies in an attempt to look at the west’s extreme capitalist state; the United States, and then the north where the Nordic countries offer an alternative, based on social democratic principles and welfare. Looking at the two political axes that dominate world economic debates today, poor countries like Ghana who are trying desperately to find their feet can for sure see a light of solutions at the end of the tunnel of a world of complex problems if we adopt and choose the correct party with a humane ideology and agenda.

Whiles the leftist socialists like the CPP and Democrats are advocating for an extended social protection for its citizens with government guarantees, the rightist conservatives, like the NPP in Ghana and the Republican Party in the USA with a firm believe in utmost capitalism think the opposite and are in disagreement; saying it will undermine economic growth and bring about loses and declining profits in businesses.

The NPP in Ghana has adopted policies which in color are leftist socialist but in reality a vote grabbing tactic and are implementing today the very policies they accused Nkrumah for wasting money on.

Where among these two axes must the Ghanaian voter cling to or support, and which path do we dare take for the emancipation of our nation? Is it the social democratic and welfare CPP or the conservative rightist and capitalist NPP? The answers for this debate are not easily fetched, but if we look at the successes that have been chalked by both end poles, through a careful study of social disparities and inequality rates one will easily see his way clearly and which choices to make for its citizens. The CPPs ideology and what it is seeking for Ghanaians is closely near the Nordic example, and this was among others what Dr. Nkrumah lived and died for. That is why he built hospitals and schools in almost every corner of the country, which is why he built many factories and workplaces so Ghanaians could go to work to help build the country.

The success stories of Denmark, Sweden, Holland, Iceland, Finland and Norway gives us a clue as to which direction a people looking for the way forward should take. These countries have been able to combine social welfare with high income levels, solid economic growths and macroeconomic stability. These countries have a high quality of life and a high standard of living and in fact are among the OECDs ranking of the 15 best places to live on earth. Jeffrey D. Sachs is quoted in the DN 15th may 2006 that even though there are differences in the social budgets among the Nordic countries, and yet whiles the income taxes in the USA equaled 20% of the gross national product, 30% can be said about these Nordic countries. This means that tax levels in the Nordic countries are far higher than in the USA.

But by taxing its citizens high, these countries have been able to finance an elaborate health care system, education, better pension systems and other social services, something which results into lower levels of poverty and a relatively insignificant income differentiation between the rich and poor households. The ratio of persons who own their own homes in the Nordics is also higher than their American counterparts and there is less homelessness among the Nordic countries than the USA.

Sachs further notes that in the USA 20% of the poorest of the society receive just about 5% of the total national incomes, so that, they are in nowhere near the national average. Their incomes constitute a bare 25% of the national average to put it mildly. Compared to 20% poor from the Nordic countries who receive more than 10% and thereby bringing them nearer the national average, and also closing the gaps even further.

The rightist’s conservatives argue that government spending on the public sector is prone with less effectiveness and poor management, corruption, bureaucratic bottlenecks and red tapes. The taxes which are needed to finance these government guaranteed projects also contribute in the slowing down of the general economic activity of the country. They further believe that markets tend towards equilibrium and the common interest is best served by allowing participants to pursue their self-interest. Of course there is nothing wrong with interests in the markets!

But there is an obvious misconception and an overly exaggeration here , because it was the intervention of the authorities and their central banks that prevented financial markets from breaking down recently and two of Americas largest banks were rescued out of bankruptcy under President Bush due to the credit crunch, not the markets themselves. And in Ghana so much as in Africa the actors are not well placed to bring about meaningful exertion of the so-called equilibrium. Corruption is rampant and control mechanisms minimal leaving the common man in the street at the mercy of the profit oriented capitalists in the market. Short selling and the spread of false information in other to influence the markets and profiteer becomes a play of the day. Powerful individuals are allowed to toy with critical capital for development engaging sometimes in ostentatious use of funds. A lack of control by the authorities and institutions then can bring disaster for the people and economy like we are witnessing today.

When the NPP talks of the new entrepreneur it is to emphasize the over reliance on big business to the detriment of government funded and supported institutions that take care of the welfare of the general dynamics of the population. The weakness you and I know is that party cronies and relatives; sons and daughters are the ones who enjoy to the detriment of all, because they receive incentives and credits but create no jobs, an argument that has also been already defeated by the Nordic experience.

We are recently witness to the Bush administrations overspending and mismanagement resulting in a weaker American economy today whiles the gap between the rich and poor has widened further in the USA. Similarly, their counterparts in Ghana have demonstrated like tendencies by prioritizing ostentatious lifestyles and spending We believe that without some government activity -- to protect the nation from external and individual profiteers, to ensure the safety of persons and the security of their property, to enforce the law and contract to perform -- the market mechanism could not be expected to function effectively. Even Adam Smith recognized that markets themselves required the protection and some steering from the state. We believe that political discourse in Ghana should be framed around the issue of how best government activity in the country contributes to the strengthening of all institutions of state, private sector as well as the development and attainment of a more just society.

The federal regulations board, in the face of rising oil prices suspects the oil industry of price manipulations and fixing and according to a CNN poll 84% of Americans believe oil prices are fixed, 11% don’t believe in fixing whiles 5% do not know.

The states in the north have been able to finance their national health systems which leave nobody behind. The Nordic countries have high expectancy rate and lower infant mortality rate than the USA. Life expectancy rate in the Nordic is 80years as compared to 78yrs in the USA where the government does not guarantee any health insurance for its citizens and where millions of families are too poor to pay their way through the health system. Ironically, the overdependence of the American system (based on the conservative rightist paradigms) on the private sector has seen a mammoth lack of effectiveness that although Americans pay 14% as against 11% gross national product on health, they get less effective Medicare than their counterparts in the north.

An opinion poll a while ago also indicated that 78% of Americans think things are worse today and 16% said things are getting better whiles only 6% think things are better.

"The United States is facing both a recession and a flight from the dollar. The decline in housing prices, the weight of accumulated household debt, and the losses and uncertainties in the banking system threaten to push the economy into a self-reinforcing decline.”—George Soros.

The conservative capitalist’s mentality which the NPP government is propagating and practicing blindly causes for concern! The issues with over-reliance on big business and selling all you own to big companies where persons with dubious character suddenly can rise to the top due to their connections, the award of contracts, 10% and party cronyisms is what the CPP wants to uproot in our bid to create a better Ghana! For seven years the NPP has presided over a bankrupt GT, and seen it run into a ditch. In the end they gave up by selling it off to the Whiteman because either they don’t know how to run a thing or they have no confidence in themselves. Take the governments’ bailing-outs of Fannie May, Freddie Mack for 200billion Dollars and Bear Sterns 28 billion dollars and later the collapse of Lehman Brothers and then AIG for 85billion for instance, which is a colossal example of what extreme speculation and gross negligence can lead to under an unchecked capitalist system. In the end the government would be expected to bail the company or else the ship made to sink followed by mass unemployment, lay-offs and executive parachutes for the capitalists, speculators and their loved ones. It is not true that when some few cronies become rich our interests are taken care of, nor is it true that the market alone can bring about welfare and level out the disparities in society! At least this current crisis is witness to that fact. To quote Kåre Willock a conservative and former prime minister of Norway: “…what is happening now is the irresponsibility of the neo-conservatives…the real conservatives since 1976 have argued that should the markets function properly, there is the need for real tighter controls and regulations by government.” This clearly means a large extent of government involvement. Following up on the two paradigms we see that the Nordic countries have big public spending yet have a lower budget deficit compared to the USA which spends less on social welfare. And higher taxes have contrary to expectations not been able to dampen the economic growth and activity. These economies on the contrary are keenly competing with the USA in many areas and their economies are strong. The success story of the Nordics can be explained in the following factors; Whiles based on a broad and comprehensive tax system yet less worrisome, these countries are investing in international business, market forces, globalization, and private ownership in their industries where the state plays a supporting and leading role.

These countries are not socialists (economies based on state ownership and central planning) but social welfare economies where private enterprises and ownership, where the market combined with the state ensures social protection. These countries invest heavily in the health sector, education, research and technology, housing and the environment and to also ensure that manpower developmental needs are not lacking, to ensure that they are way ahead and can compete technologically. There is also a constant renewal of the public sector so as to make it effective in its provision of needs essential to the people. Education is tailored to the needs of the society and developmental endeavors and those who fall out have a network of other social and vocational programs which is ready to place and take care of them.

In Norway, the labor office does not only provide extra training to young men and women for specific jobs, it also supports and motivates employers who wish to employ these young men and women. The labor office also assists young men and women who wish to establish new companies financially and there are modalities for sourcing constant counseling and guidance so that the newly formed company can be developed and prospered at a faster pace. The software and programs "arena" used by this country’s labor offices for instance has been adjudged the best public sector software in the world, just to illustrate some of the support institutions here receive.

Social democracy among others is the situation where economics, socio-political institutions hand-in-hand with the people, corporate and private sector seek to create wealth, welfare for the commonwealth and their developmental needs in a humane and responsible manner, taking into consideration also the preservation of their lifestyles, environment, the people and their common heritage. We the CPP believe that the people get their welfare and wellbeing through viable institutions not from individualists, capitalists, speculators and profiteers or from hand-outs. And that a society of viable institutions produces a healthy prosperous population which in turn can make any established business flourish. We further believe that every nation must have its own industrial pillars upon which its development and the fight against poverty, unemployment and environmental degradation can be fought and won.

Further, we do not believe in an educational system that produces unproductive young men and women, where 50% of pupils who sat the basic education exams are doomed to failure.

It is our maintained believe that constant training in and outside the classroom coupled with assisted job creation can bring about decent lives for all our citizens. We believe in Ghana and the Ghanaian, his capabilities and enterprise. The CPP stands for these positions, and has never been clearer on the issues than now. The state must take the lead in showing the way as to how private and corporate enterprises can thrive in the spirit of partnership and cooperation not of sell-outs and sell-offs. The state must set and determine the pace and direction so that development can be sustainable and beneficial to all not counting out the private sector as a key player. We will rebuild and create jobs and divest when we think it is necessary in the spirit of cooperation and solidarity for nation building.

These are noble ideals and principles which the CPP will bring about to see this great country leading on the continent again.

By getting government directly involved in the correction of disparities in society so that we don’t leave responsibility and burdens on the private sector alone, we are bringing a responsive government to the doorstep of every Ghanaian.

By making government create jobs and later encourage private participation, the government is setting the developmental pace and tone as well as the direction a nation should take to responsible prosperity which takes care of all. The CPP believes in and looks at every Ghanaian as a resource; child and old, rich and poor, city dweller and country dweller woman and man and our duty and challenge is to find how to make a mix which will generate benefit to all, how to put Ghanaians back to work with a decent living condition and standards. An enlightened, enriched and informed populace can voice out and clearly dictate the turn of events for the betterment of our country bringing with it a matured democracy and a decent way of living.

This is possible if only we believe in ourselves, in what we preach as well as give ourselves a chance. This is possible if we admonish the thought for instance that only the white man can run our affairs effectively as illustrated by the NDC and NPPs sell-offs and sell outs!

The CPP believes that development must be brought to the doorsteps of all Ghanaians in their homes, and that building motorways to our hometowns only for them to be occupied by unemployed highway robbers is no development, nor can we call it development when we build mansions and secure them like forts with bugler proofs and electric barbed wires for lack of security for Ghanaians. The peace loving Ghanaian lives in fear due to crime and burglary and our capital cities have never been so polluted and filthy. And whiles we are still poor and lacking basic amenities like water, our leaders have been interested in their comforts. The CPP will do something about these issues because our philosophy and ideals calls for it.

We believe in the collective and solidarity with every ethnic group in our country and the common man in the street, who struggles constantly to make ends meet. We will unite Ghana and give a helping hand to the weak in our society in a manner that secures them a descent life for good. It is not in the nature, ideals and philosophy of the CPP to buy presidential jets whiles our people are thirsting for good drinking water nor to build castles and spend ostentatiously on celebrations and medallions when more than half the population of our youth have no jobs.

Kwame Nkrumah was selfless and devoted himself to the urgent cause of Ghana building schools, factories, hospitals, dams, roads and essential infrastructure to our developmental needs .It is our duty today to think and act in his footsteps.

The CPP welcomes you; we will train and prepare your heart and minds for the assignment ahead, not for our sake only, but for posterity. Our aim is to make you learn to listen, respect and have the desire to serve Ghana in sincerity, humility and with zeal. It is just a matter of time and the CPP will prove them wrong that we cannot manage our own affairs. For those who genuinely believe in Ghana, it is time to go to work to liberate our country from the artificial and self centred elitists. Vote CPP Vote for Change! Forward Ever, Backward Never!

Festus Kwadwo Lartey-Adjei

Labour consultant and interim chairman of cpp Scandinavia Oslo cpp.scandinavia@yahoo.no