Residents of Wa comment on performance of government

WA, April 16, GNA - Some members of the public in the Wa Municipality have expressed different sentiments about the performance of President John Evans Atta Mills' government as he takes stock of his achievements of his 100 days in office.

All those who spoke to the Ghana News Agency at Wa on Thursday were unanimous in their assertion that the first 100 days could not be a proper time frame to measure the success or failure of a new government. However while some of them said the government was moving in the right direction, others were of the opinion that the government had not done enough within the first 100 days to convince them that it was capable of fulfilling its promises.

They made the comments when the Ghana News Agency went round to find out from the public whether their expectations on the first 100 days of the government had been met.

Mr Mahama Dabuo, a retailer of building materials said the government had started on a good note and was optimistic that the President would fulfil the promises he made to the people by the end of his term in office.

He said the government should however do something about the high prices of goods on the market which he observed were shooting up daily. Madam Asana Abu, a businesswoman said; "If you compare President Mills' first 100 days in office to that of Ex-president Kufuor in 2001, you will see that President Mills has done very well. "People are talking of hardships which are not the making of President Mills but rather the former government. They are temporary and will soon be overcome."

Alhaji Saaka Alhassan, a Public Servant said he would have given high marks to the President if the prices of goods and services had remained at the levels they were in December. He stated that the escalating prices of goods without any increase in the incomes of workers could dent the image of the government. "For example a 'koko' bowl of sugar has shot up from two Ghana cedis to three Ghana cedis within three months while a bottle of soft drink is selling at 60 Ghana pesewas up from 35 Ghana pesewas at some places in town," he said.

Madam Sandia Abudu, a trader said she was yet to see any initiative by the government that could convince her that life would be better under the new administration.

Majority of those who spoke to the GNA asked President Mills to reach out to foreign partners to solicit for funds to embark on programmes that would alleviate poverty since they did not believe that internally generated funds alone could solve the country's problems. 16 April 09