General News of Wednesday, 30 November 2016
Source: The New Statesman
National Youth Organizer of the New Patriotic Party, Sammy Awuku, has admonished the National Peace Council to stop calling on political parties’ leadership to sign peace accords, and rather descend on the Electoral Commission to demonstrate its transparency and neutrality as the arbiter of the December 7 elections.
According to Sammy Awuku, the incessant calls on parties to append their signatures to peace accords will remain unsuccessful if the EC continues to show that it is working in favour a certain political party in the December 7 election which is few days away.
Sammy Awuku made this call when addressing the NPP Northern Regional Youth Rally in Tamale as part of his nationwide campaign tour.
On the special voting that will take place on December 1, the National Youth Organizer alleged that it would mark the beginning of the commission’s grand ploy to rig the December 7 elections, in favour of the governing National Democratic Congress.
According to him, some eligible voters have had their names deleted from the special voters’ list. “The special voters’ list is a source of worry to us as a political party because several names have been deleted,” he stressed.
Sammy Awuku downplayed the EC’s running advertisements on some media networks asking the electorate to go home immediately after exercising their franchise. He explained that there is no such law requiring voters to immediately leave the polling stations after voting.
“We disagree with the EC’s advert asking voters to go home. We are ready to protect the precious ballots. We are determined and prepared to defend the ballot on December 7, and no amount of news conferences by the security agencies can frustrate us,” he maintained.
On why the electorate should vote the NDC government out, Sammy Awuku said another term for President Mahama and the NDC would only mean prolonged hardship.
“Ghanaians should punish Mahama’s government for taking us for granted. We have suffered for eight years under Mahama and so you need to register your anger on the ballot. Sacrifice the last eight days to achieve this goal,” he emphasized.
Sammy Awuku said Ghanaians could suffer the penalty of President Mahama’s dictatorship if his mandate is renewed.
“The NDC now symbolizes desperation. They have wasted the taxpayers’ money on erection of giant billboards. Ghanaians will regret it if they make a mistake and renew Mahama’s mandate,” he said
The NPP National Youth Organizer also used the occasion to advise the party’s communicators to stay away from chieftaincy and religious issues.
“Chieftaincy and religious politics will not help our party especially in the Northern Region,” he underscored.
He reaffirmed the NPP’s determination to get rid of the NDC through the ballot on December 7.
The New Statesman