We’ll respond harshly if NPP thugs harm any of our members – NDC Youth Wing

The Youth Wing of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has warned that it will respond harshly should the New Patriotic Party (NPP) thugs attack its members.

The NDC has accused the NPP of imtimidating and harrasing their members at the ongoing Voters Registration exercise.

They also gave the government a 72 hour ultimatum to arrest persons involved in the killing of a 28-year-old man at a registration centre at Banda in the Bono Region.

At a press briefing on Wednesday, the National Youth Organiser of the NDC, George Opare Addo said they will not hold back if any of their members are touched again.

“We are charged by the events of the despicable Ayawaso West Wuogon bye-elections, the brutalities meted out to some of our compatriots in the on-going registration process with one murdered in cold blood, and by this press conference SERVE A STRONG WARNING that, if even one individual is harmed again in the event of the registration process, the National Democratic Congress, and its Youth Wing, will respond fiercely and harshly to the perpetrators of that assault ; whether acting under the guise of uniformed security or acting irresponsibly as an agent of the FAILED Akufo-Addo government.”

Below is the full statement

PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY GEORGE OPARE ADDO, NATIONAL YOUTH ORGANIZER OF THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS (NDC), ON THE FAILED PRESIDENCY OF THE AKUFO-ADDO GOVERNMENT AND THE EXCESSES OF THE ON-GOING REGISTRATION EXERCISE

Ladies and gentlemen of the press, fellow country men and women listening to me across the length and breadth of this great nation of ours, the NDC’s youth wing is in a pensive mood this evening addressing you in the middle of two consequential crisis slapping its wrath on the citizens of our country ; the first being the COVID 19 Pandemic which has taken some precious Ghanaian lives while exerting excruciating great harm on various sectors of our nation and the second being the failed leadership of the dishonest Akufo-Addo government and its associated terrible judgments on very serious issues affecting us the citizens of this country.

Yesterday, 14th of July, 2020, Silas Wulochamey, a 28yr old citizen of this country and a new graduate from the Akim Oda Training College was accosted and killed by armed Para-militia forces operated by and for President Akufo-Addo. Silas was identified and murdered because he was perceived to have been canvassing support amongst his colleagues for H.E John Dramani Mahama on the strength of his vision to abolish the mandatory national service for college of education graduates, restore the automatic employment of Nursing and Teacher Trainees and also cancel the cancerous licensure regime of examination. Silas’ only crime like many of us was to have been heavily disappointed by the failings of President Akufo-Addo and expressing that anger against the ineptitude of the government by mobilizing for change of government.

Just like some of our citizens who have been paralyzed by the events of the Ayawaso West bye-elections, Silas paid ultimately for the unflinching nature of his well-grounded convictions with his life – slaughtered in cold blood by hooligans whose energies have been procured for nothing beyond the inordinate political aspirations of the President who swore an oath to protect him. Up till date the killers of Silas have not been arrested. We demand within 72hrs the apprehension of those who killed him else we will take action by ourselves to look for the hooligans.

Our job! our mission is to carry on this fight into the December polls. We must work every day tirelessly to elect H.E John Dramani Mahama who will lead us to build a nation where every Ghanaian is able to live a life of peace and dignity. Indeed, this fight transcends partisanship. Being against Akufo-Addo and throwing your support for John Mahama does not make you necessarily NDC. This is a call to good citizenship

It is on the pivot of the pain of those who have been brutalized or murdered for standing against this FAILED and DISHONEST Akufo-Addo Presidency, the pain of those whose citizenship have been questioned and vilified just on the basis of which part of our country they live or come from, the pain of the young people depressed by the onslaught of unemployment, women dying during child-birth, the naked privatization of public wealth by the family of Akufo-Addo, the ridiculous nature that the office of the Vice-President has been reduced to denigrating the reputation of his contenders and many other occurrences that have created despair of such magnitude within our country, that I address you on tonight.

This country is fast going down the abyss and it is sad that the NPP’s youth wing, now reduced to a conveyor belt of violence, with its youth organizer himself assaulting his political opponents on political talk shows was engaged in a political comedy just yesterday, spending his energy on the politics of the old-fashion, trading in lies, and underrating the sheer gravity of the hopelessness spread across the country and the disappointment of the youth of this country in Akufo-Addo’s government. A disappointment that is compelling young people to give up on our country. The NPP youth wing animated by the trappings of political power, some who are beneficiaries of a corrupted employment regime for friends and family, think sadly that young people should join this disillusioned brigade as long as it benefits without merit the few.

Everywhere in our communities, we see lots of young folks who supported the Akufo-Addo 2016 campaign whose lives are worse off than it was, and who see a few plundering the resources of the state at the expense of their welfare
For the first time in the history of our country, vigilante groups under the guise of the National Security have taken over the monitoring of the voters’ registration exercise and are moving from one polling station to another intimidating and harassing people.

The Police and the Military hierarchy have allowed itself to be infiltrated by these hooligans visiting violence on the citizens of this country. For the avoidance of doubt innocent voters and members of the National Democratic Congress, NDC, are citizens of Ghana who are enjoined by law to enjoy unfettered access to this country’s democratic exercises without any form of suppression, exemption or shrewd mechanisms to elbow their participation and active involvement

We have invited you the media here this evening to address the youth of this country through your platforms, on the bitter betrayal of the trust of the youth of this country by the government and the systemic damage that the obnoxious policies of this failed, inept and dishonest Akufo-Addo government have had on the youth of this country. We will also outline to you, some of the commitments of the next President of the republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama to address the damage done to the youth of this country by the failed Akufo-Addo government and restore real hope for this country.

We understand as a party and as young people, that the dishonest President, Akufo-Addo, is getting nervous about the campaign of the National Democratic Congress, NDC, and the resolve of young people to vote President John Mahama into office as the President of our republic.

We will have Him and the NPP know; that the youth of our country will never forget that He created the biggest government in our Nation’s history, feeding fat on tax payers money, that his ‘invisible’ forces managed the Kintampo Waterfalls causing the death of 19 students, that His Delta force attacked the Ashanti Regional Security Coordinator, that his ‘invisible forces threw out the appointed manager of Eastern Regional NHIA, that his Delta force attacked a sitting judge and freed suspected criminals in open court, with the AG subsequently ratifying that conduct by dropping the charges against them, that CHRAJ found that his cousin (Ken Ofori Atta) breached certain processes in the fraudulent 2.25bn dollar government bond, that the MD of BOST sold 5 Million litres of contaminated oil to his own company, that ten thousand bags of government-subsidized fertilizers for farmers in the Upper West Region went missing, that 400 tricycles have been stolen at the Northern Development Authority, that the Presidency spent GHS 62million on largely fruitless foreign travels in just nine months, that a whopping 10 million USD was wasted on cocoa roads audit, that the Ministry of finance paid 1million USD to Kroll Associates for no work done, that he opposes accountability as seen in the hounding out of the Auditor General and several other sad episodes as has happened under this government.

This Failed-President has earned for himself the title of debt-in-chief for burdening this country and its future generations with a debt count of over 230 Billion Ghana cedis which is the gravest in our nation’s history, yet with nothing to show. Under Akufo-Addo, the force of corruption is on rampage openly fighting all the anti-corruption institutions we have within our governance framework.

We have now in this country an election-purpose government that is willing to risk the lives of students for the purpose of elections. It is ironic that at a time that President Akufo-Addo is sprinting away from the deadly Corona Virus in isolation, He has put senior high school students in the harms way of infection with his political assigns busy on their campuses. This is NOT Leadership but Tyranny. We sympathize with parents in these very difficult moments and we ask the government to allow parents access to their traumatized wards. This Failed-President looked into the eyes of the people of Ghana and lied to them that PPEs have been provided to all Senior High Schools. It took the national teachers association to bring to bear the falsehood of that claim.

Last week, a student of KNUST SHS while painfully dying in the hands of his father uttered these last words, “If you had come early I won’t have died’’. This incident exposes the inequities of the government’s covid 19 fight in our various Senior High Schools and it is a sad spectacle playing. This President because he sees SHS students as votes and not as beloved children belonging to homes has prevented parents of the SHS students to meet their wards.

Yet! he sadly has his campaign agents parading around these schools. The president of our country should not be reckless in his mandate to protect the lives of the citizens of this countryWe the NDC Youth Wing and the mass of young people of Ghana want the Failed President to know that the Violence and ethnocentrism being crudely executed in the on-going registration process won’t work and the use of acerbic and vitriolic language thus calling opponents incompetent won’t hit the way his political consultants and the dishonest Dr. Bawumia think. We young people will get rid of this dishonest President by the force of the ballot.

This extremely non performing government of Akufo-Addo has consistently cast slurs and aspersions on the sterling record of the NDC’s government of John Dramani Mahama. This government, rather than focusing on its abysmal record in office and its inability to fulfill the numerous promises it made to Ghanaians is resorting to the use of crude tactics with the tacit support and action of the Electoral Commission as the country head for the polls of December 2020.

It’s obvious, that this government is seeking to ride solely on its double-track- free-SHS program for its 2020 bid.
It is important to emphasize that the NDC views education very seriously as is evident in the huge investment made in the education sector. The upgrading of facilities in the various senior high schools – classrooms, boarding facilities among other things was of a broader vision.

Again, it is important to put on record that it is the NDC and not the NPP that established in our 1992 constitution that education at the senior high level be made progressively free and as a party, our governments have always taken steps to ensure the realization of this. For which reason the NDC government led by John Dramani Mahama instituted the progressively free senior high school program where the school fees of all day school students and some components for boarding school students were completely catered for by the government. Indeed, at the time of leaving office, day SHS students were not paying fees.

It has always been important to properly upgrade the infrastructure and human resource capacity of the various SHS mainly to be able to implement a successful Free SHS programs, reason why this government is struggling to run this program. Thereby being forced to resort to the dreadful double track system which makes our younger brothers and sisters stay home for overly long periods and may increase the level of truancy. Let me state that the next government of John Dramani Mahama and Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang come 7th January, 2021 will do away with the double track system and ensure that various senior high schools have the requisite facilities and resources to continue the implementation of the constitutional right of a Free SHS program

It is important to emphasize that this country under the leadership of John Mahama outperformed this current administration in all spheres of our national life. From health, to education, to social infrastructure and above all creating an egalitarian society.

It is also in our serious contestation to bring before the Ghanaian people the murdering of our supporters and the brutalities being meted to our agents across the country. Our party members have been brutalized in the Bono Region, Western North Region, Volta, Ashanti and largely across the country. In Awutu Senya East the head of our party agent was pounded with pistols by sponsored hooligans of the NPP leaving him with deep wounds. The Ayawaso West Wuogon has become yet again another spectacle of violence by rented hooligans of the NPP.

We are charged by the events of the despicable Ayawaso West Wuogon bye-elections, the brutalities meted out to some of our compatriots in the on-going registration process with one murdered in cold blood, and by this press conference SERVE A STRONG WARNING that, if even one individual is harmed again in the event of the registration process, the National Democratic Congress, and its Youth Wing, will respond fiercely and harshly to the perpetrators of that assault ; whether acting under the guise of uniformed security or acting irresponsibly as an agent of the FAILED Akufo-Addo government. It is unfortunate that the Ghana police service today has a new branch known as the NPP (New Patriotic Police) that runs on the instructions and whims of the NPP. From today, the NDC Youth Wing under my command will respond viciously to the NPP. We are not complaining to anybody, we are by this medium informing Ghanaians on what is happening and that our retaliation should be understood as the defense of our personal security and liberties.

The “Militants” on our side, and young people in the NDC have taken caution from the Governments white paper on the Ayawaso West Wuogon Commission’s report that, the hooliganism perpetrated by Akufo-Addo’s ‘invisible force’ members enrolled into our security services always go unpunished.

Under the circumstances, we have taken the duty of defending our lives and liberty into our own hands. And for the records, there is nothing, absolutely nothing, that can defeat the organized will, might and force of mass action. To the good people of this country, the NDC Youth Wing stands with you in your spirited fight to bring to an end this failed and corrupt Presidency on December 7th

Under my command as the National Youth organizer of the biggest party in the country, I am directing all our party’s support base, young people, and the general citizenry to take the names, videos and pictures of the hooligans unleashed by Candidate Akufo-Addo to registration centers to unleash violence on innocent people. We will respond well within our rights of self-defense and it will be fierce. I have directed that the full force of the NDC youth wing will be on stand-by to protect the citizens of this country against its violent government. I am charging you young people and the youth of this country to use any means available to defend your lives. Candidate Akufo-Addo cannot attempt to monopolize violence. We will retaliate in double folds any attack henceforth on any NDC faithful and any young person in this country
We remind young people to let the timeless words as captured in our national anthem, “RESIST OPPRESSORS RULE”, ring in their hearts as they march to register at the registration centers. Comrades, friends and fellow countrymen/women, let no one prevent you from accessing your inalienable and exclusive right to register to vote

Instead of giving young people jobs, this failed-President has decided to arm them with weapons at registration centers to inflict violence. This is not what the people of Ghana need. This 2020 December 7th elections is the TIME to get someone into the Flagstaff House who actually and really wants our country developed. We have a defining opportunity to elect H.E John Dramani Mahama as President of our republic.

Between the two candidates, it is only John Dramani Mahama who has been speaking on his pledges to the people of this country when elected into office awaiting the launching of the NDC manifesto in August. The NPP’s Akufo-Addo has said nothing with few months into December on his promises to the people of Ghana.
H.E John Dramani Mahama has already mentioned the following and we invite the failed Akufo-Addo government to do sam

1. Reduce the current size of 125 Ministers & Deputies by at least 40, and reduce political appointees.
2. Pay customers of the collapsed financial institutions whose monies are locked up.
3. Free Technical and Vocational Education (TVET) at the second cycle and tertiary level to reduce unemployment.
4. Train technically skilled human resource for industrial development and job creation.
5. Launch a National Apprenticeship Programme to train technically skilled human resource, for rapid industrialization, job creation and entrepreneurship.
6. Scrap the 50% increment in Communication Service Tax.
7. Construct regional hospitals in the six new regions and the Western Region.
8. Provide all remaining districts with functional and fully equipped hospitals.
9. Provide polyclinics, health centres, CHPS compounds to improve access to quality and efficient health care delivery across all parts of the country.
10. Re-introduce the abandoned ‘ONUADOR’ mobile clinic vans to take healthcare to underserved and hard to reach communities.
11. Build and re-introduce the ‘ONIPA NUA’ hospital ship to provide medical services to the inaccessible riverine and fishing communities along the Volta River.
12. Expand and double the capacity of the 37 Military Hospital in Accra.
13. Construct two Infectious Diseases Centers and two additional International Medical Research Centers.
14. Fast-track the building of E-blocks that were abandoned to ease congestion in secondary schools.
15. Expand SHS infrastructure and facilities to cater for expected increase in free SHS admissions.
16. Abolish the double-track system in SHS and streamline the placement of JHS graduates.
17. Improve teacher motivation and ensure a conducive environment & a one-track qualitative learning experience for free SHS students.
18. Establish University Campuses in all regions, focusing on the six new regions.
19. Abolish the mandatory national service for College of Education Graduates.
20. Restore the automatic employment of college of Education Graduates.
21. Abolish licensure examination for trainee teachers.
22. Restore the automatic employment of Nursing Trainee Graduates.
23. Maintain the payment of allowances to Teacher and Nursing Trainees while in school.
24. Restore the distribution of free fertilizer and chemicals to Cocoa Farmers.
25. Dualize the Tema-Ho, Tema-Aflao, Kasoa to Cape Coast and Accra – Kumasi roads.
26. Complete the abandoned Eastern Corridor roads.
27. Complete all abandoned or uncompleted health, educational, road and other infrastructural projects.
28. End nepotism and weed out corruption.
29. Eradicate the nepotistic approach to payment of contractors and other business people.
30. Introduce reforms to adjust and realign the fiscal framework in order to sustain our growth.
31. Make agro-processing and agribusiness a major focus.
32. Wage a consistent battle against hardship and bring down the cost of living.
33. Through major capital investment in health and education, we shall offer additional job opportunities for health and education sector workers.
34. Carry out a comprehensive review of the banking sector and the banking crisis.
35. Restore the participation of indigenous Ghanaian businesses in the financial sector.
36. Introduce a well-regulated, 3-tier banking system with various classes of banks to cater for the various segments of the markets such as SMEs.
37. Channel borrowed funds into capital investments and the productive sectors of the economy and not consumption as is being done by the Akufo-Addo government.
38. Create permanent and dignifying jobs for the teeming youth, not ad-hoc ones that lead to no productivity.
39. Create digital jobs and through major capital investments in health and education, create additional job opportunities for health and education sector workers.
40. Improve and decentralize births and deaths registration at the local level.
41. Train, Empower, and Resource Assembly members to be responsible for the local level registration of all births and deaths in their electoral areas to improve the National Population Register.
    Ladies and gentleman, the NDC and Candidate John Mahama will put its full manifesto before the people of Ghana soon.

For the countless young people, especially young women, who call us every day inspired by the choice of the eminent Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang as the running mate of H.E John Dramani Mahama, I want to encourage you to use this historic opportunity to silence failed President Akufo-Addo and his fellowship of crude patriarchy who think that Ghanaian women are not dynamic enough. The consequences of the outcome of the 2020 Presidential elections are enormous –
We have a clear choice between two discretions: The Job of the President is largely a choice between the use of discretions. We have a choice between candidate Mahama who allowed state agencies to do their full investigations into all allegations of corruption as against candidate Akufo-Addo who has become the chief clearing agent of all corruption in this government while failing to even act on the findings of reports that has indicted some of his appointees.
VOTE! Vote for John Dramani Mahama as President on December 7th.

DON’T! NEVER DO! Don’t ever give cynics and purveyors of crude patriarchy an arrogated argument on the 7th December, 2020, that women are their own enemies and that women do not support their own. Do not ever ratify the backward narrative that a woman cannot be the President or Vice-President of this country. Every generation has a question to answer and John Dramani Mahama, the NDC and you will answer the unspoken question of the place of women at the seat of Government. Especially so when the woman is more competent, more qualified and more educated than her contenders. In 2008, failed-President Akufo-Addo bowed to pressure and dropped Hon Hajia Alimah Mahama as his running mate. If there is any striking difference between John Mahama and Nana Akufo-Addo, it is the decisiveness of John Dramani Mahama in the nomination of Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang as his running mate.

We have a historic opportunity to elect Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang who has been a fearless and spirited fighter for women in all her life as the first female Vice-President of our republic. This is an instructive step to recognize, inspire and unleash the productive energies of the dynamic movement of women power. The future of our country is truly female
I ask you the youth of Ghana to Arise for your country. And I assure you the teeming youth of the NDC that the December 2020 elections will be won by President John Dramani Mahama

Win with JOHN and JANE. We will Make history together.

Thank you for your audience and may God bless us all.