President Akufo-Addo
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has urged communicators of the governing New Patriotic Party to focus on selling the achievements of his government, ahead of the December 7 elections, instead of joining others in petty politics based on ethnicity, which has the tendency of dividing the country.
“We need to do a campaign which is not about where you come from – whipping up ethnic sentiments. It has never helped this country and it will not help us. We should be the very people to recognise that these diversity, this Ghanaian tapestry which is full of so many different elements but comes together in the Ghanaian statement, and we should be stretching that, the Ghana Project, that is what I call it,” the President said this yesterday when he held a meeting with members of the NPP campaign communications advisory team via zoom.
“Whether you are a Muslim or a Christian, it should not be part of our discourse and, clearly, gender should also not be part of our discourse. We are looking at all kinds of records and competences, so it should be possible that the discussion before the Ghanaian people to be discussions about competences, abilities, records, achievement, output…,”he stated.
Historic
President Akufo-Addo noted that this year’s election will be different from all others held in the past, saying it is going to be based on his record and that of his predecessor.
“For the first time in our history, we are going to go into an election where the two major parties are being led by a President and his predecessor. It has not happened before. Usually it is an incumbent against somebody who is coming for the first time,” he said.
He added that looking at the records of the two presidents in the period of their terms, making the comparison will go a long way to ensure that Ghanaians make an informed decision before voting.
Information management
The President again said another important issue is how well the two parties manage information.
“So, as far as identifying the two critical issues that we have to define for the Ghanaian election, I think you are spot on in insisting, first of all, on the comparison of records, how effective both presidents have been in furthering social and economic advances,” he said.
The President added that another point that will play a very critical role in the election is the quality of leadership provided by him and his predecessor.
“We still have to ask ourselves who best can manage the affairs of the country, both in normal times as well as in extra-ordinary times like these last three or four months,” he said
President Akufo-Addo added that one thing the NPP should hammer on as part of its enviable records is “the quality of achievements of this government in various areas, whether it’s in health, education, infrastructure development, across board, social and economic,” noting that what his government has achieved so far have “affected everybody in the country.”
President Akufo-Addo rejected that claims that the NPP has an agenda to disenfranchise a particular group of people in the country.
“I don’t understand where that is coming from. Its deliberate, its artificial. People who know the dynamics of Ghana know that it’s been done for short term political gains,” he added.
Source: Daily Statesman
