The North East Regional Executives of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) have stated that the NPP government has put up some strategic measures in place to set up a water melon factory in the region before the 2020 elections.
According to them, government has found a strategic investor who has now shown interest in processing water melon in the region.
Addressing the media on Wednesday in what they described as “setting the records straight” on a number of allegations levelled against the party and Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia by the main opposition NDC in the region.
The North East Regional secretary of NPP, Sule Sambian, who addressed the media on behalf of his colleagues indicated that the NPP sees the plight of the water melon farmers in the region. And they therefore would not sit aloof and watch them suffer. He emphasized that; the water melon factory will be constructed before the general election in 2020.
The NDC in the North East Region in a press conference last week had called on political figures of the NPP in the region to apologize to the people of the region for the nonchalant manner in which they approached issues of the region. They also criticized the vice president for failing to establish a water melon factory as promised to the people in the region.
However, Sule Sambian at the media engagement said government through the efforts of the vice president had concluded arrangements to set up the water melon factory in the region.
He described the NDC press statement as a shambolic conference, pretending to pass it off as a press conference intended to score nonexistent political points in the region.
He said the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) flourishes on lies and propaganda, adding that the NDC has made lying its habit and therefore resorts to it anytime it is faced with the realities. The NPP executives in the region will continue to expose them with facts and figures to counter the falsehood peddled, he added.
Sule Sambian mentioned that the NPP government has initiated a series of developmental projects, including construction of roads, health centers, and schools among others in the region. He said the NPP government is poised to fulfill its campaign promises to the people of the North East Region.
Speaking on the issue of health centers being closed down as a result of lack of essential drugs and personnel, the north east regional secretary of NPP indicated that all health centers mentioned in the NDC press statement are still admitting patients. He described the claim by the NDC as unfortunate and should be disregarded.
Read the full statement below
ORTH-EAST REGION NPP MEETS THE PRESS READ BY THE REGIONAL SECRETARY (SULLEY SAMBIAN) ON THE 31ST JULY 2019
Ladies and gentlemen of the inky fraternity, on behalf of the Regional Chairman and the Regional Executive Committee of the New Patriotic Party, (NPP) we wish to welcome you to this maiden edition of our meet the press series. We would engage you through this platform to update you on the projects initiated by the NPP government in this region, so that you do not perish “for lack of knowledge. The NPP in this region considers it a duty to keep you abreast with the “right knowledge” so you do not not fall prey to the deceptions of the “roaring lion” (THE NDC) whose duty in our political dispensation is to create, to loot and to share.
This program we must confess comes at a time that the leadership of the NDC in this region decided to organize a shambolic conference, pretending to pass it off us a press conference intended to score non existent political points. We will revert to the issues raised by the NDC in their press conference after giving you an update of what the NPP has so far done in this region. We will consider this update on constituency by constituency basis annexed to this press statement together with accompanying pictures (kindly refer to the pages 8-36)
THE NDC PRESS CONFERENCE
On the 18th of July 2019, the NDC held a press conference in which they raised issues ranging from failed campaign promises to poor health conditions in the health sector.
Thankfully, our friends today can organize a press conference as regional officers of the NDC because a region was created for us by the NPP government. Thanks to the NPP for fulfilling a campaign promise of creating the North-East Region. But for the creation of this region we wonder on what platform our friends in the NDC would be standing to organize a press conference as regional officers of the NDC. At least they ought to acknowledge the role played by Dr Bawumia and Hajia Alima in ensuring that our petition for a region caught the attention of the president.
Frankly, we would never have accorded them the dignity of responding to their press conference. However, we are tempted to rebut these claims because of the danger that these grand deceptions of the NDC may give legitimacy to a false perception in the minds of a few that the NPP government has not kept faith with people of the North-East Region. Nay, far from it!
First of all, their press conference was both hollow in content and poorly written. It typifies the kind of opposition we have in this region We will resist the temptation to criticize that poorly written piece and deal with the content for what it is worth.
HEALTH SECTOR ALLEGATIONS.
In their press statement the NDC shamefully mentioned the names of some clinics and CHPS compounds which lack essential drugs or personnel leading to their closures. Ladies and gentlemen, the NDC is known to be a political party founded on lies. They glorify propaganda. It did not come to us as a surprise when in their press conference they decided to engage in outright lies
Wulugu health center that so much cacophony was made by the NDC was built by his excellency President John Agyekum Kufuor. It was deserted in 2009 by his Excellency President John Evans Atta Mills and John Mahama. In 2017 it was renovated and refurbished by his excellency Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. The Wulugu health center is operational and the staff are actively going about their professional duties. The health center is stocked with medicines and medical equipment for health care delivery. The media can also contact the medical superintendent in charge, Mr. Chris Agyeman for details. Mr. Agyeman even mentioned some names of persons who visited the facility for treatment even on the very day the press conference was addressed by these junior incompetent ones. Ladies and gentlemen, you can cross-check with him on 0200333933.
During the reign of Mr. John Mahama the facility applied for accreditation to run on the NHIA scheme. This application pended until the NDC was soundly humiliated in the December 2016 polls. The NPP has since ensured that the facility got the accreditation.
In their press statement, they accused the NPP government for the total neglect of the Yama health center. Ironically, ladies and gentlemen, this facility was abandoned by the NDC government until the Member of Parliament for Walewale decided to apply his common fund towards the renovation of the health centre.
Similar gloomy pictures were painted about Famisa and Nasuan CHPS compounds. Ladies and gentlemen of the media, we are indeed dealing with a desperately shameless opposition. To propagate outright lies over issues that can easily be verified, would baffle even a toddler. In Famisa I spoke to the officer in charge John Nabil. The facility has been functioning except during the period of the unfortunate tribal skirmishes between the konkombas and the Chokosis. These two tribes smoked the peace pipe some months ago. The facility has been in full throttle in terms of its operations.
At the same facility at Famisa in the Chereponi district the NDC alleges the facility has been abandoned by the workers because there are no essential medicines to deal with health issues. The NPP took the pains to cross-check with the medical officer by name John Nabil. He expressed extreme surprise at the blatant falsehood peddled by the NDC. He maintained that even a few days to that apology of a press conference, the facility attended to patients. He declined to send the folders of these patients because it would amount to an egregious breach of confidentiality. You can again contact Mr. Nabil on 0549772358
The other health facilities mentioned in the press statement of the NDC as either having been closed down for non availability of drugs or staff are all fabrications from the NDC
THE WATER MELON FACTORY
In the press statement of the NDC they called on the key political figures of the NPP in the North-East Region to apologize to the people of the region for the nonchalant manner in which they approach issues of the region. They criticized the vice president for failing to establish a water Melon factory as promised.
To jump to the conclusions that a promise which has not yet been fulfilled amounts to a failure to fulfill the same exposes a certain depravity of thought. The NPP is keen on delivering on its mandate
As North Easterners, we are concerned about the plight of the water Melon farmers. Our brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers all engage in water Melon farming. So much income is derived by these farmers and so the NPP is poised on setting up a melon factory
1D1F is the program that is supposed to address this challenge. However
What the NDC fails to understand is that the 1D1F program is a private sector led initiative. Government intervenes to ensure that investors get funding for it. The NPP is determined to fulfill this promise
From the infantile logic of the NDC, once a promise has been made, the fact that it has not yet been fulfilled amounts to a failure. Only people with warped logic would come to this conclusion. The NPP will set up a melon factory in this region before 2020 elections. We can bet on this because we know that a strategic investor has been found. An investor has now shown interest. The details will be made known to you in our next encounter with the media.
We hate to engage in political equalization because it was on account of the NDCs failure to manage the affairs of State that they were shown the exit in 2016. But on the issue of the water Melon factory, is the NDC saying that water Melon began to get rotten only when the NPP took office in 2017? If the answer is in the affirmative, then we should be grateful to the government for the brilliant policy of planting for food and jobs which saw increase in yields. However, if the answer is otherwise, I guess it will be a good question to ask what the clueless NDC did to ameliorate the plight of the farmers.
Before we conclude on the water Melon issue we need to underscore this point. The vice president, the minister for local government and rural development and MP for Nalerigu/Gambaga, the Deputy minister of Agriculture and MP for Walewale and the North-East Regional minister and MP for Bunkpurugu/Nakpanduri constituency are all sons and daughter of this region. We all see the plight of the Melon farmers who in most cases are our relatives. There is no way any of these key political actors would sit aloof and watch their own people suffer. As stated earlier, the water melon factory will be constructed before we go into election 2020.
We will continue to update you on all programs of the government in this region.
Thank you very much for honoring our invitation at a rather short notice.
God bless our homeland Ghana and make us great and strong
Sulley Sambian
North-East Regional Secretary
ALL MEDIA HOUSES
Source: Diamondfmonline.com
