THOUSANDS of people, mostly members and supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), on Friday converged in Koforidua, the Eastern Regional capital, to welcome Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the party’s flag bearer, who was on a campaign tour of the region.
The big crowd jammed the main Koforidua street with people trying desperately to catch a glimpse of Nana Akufo-Addo who rode in an open top Landcruiser to acknowledge cheers from them.
Vehicular traffic on the main passageway of the Nana Asafo Adjei Street, where Nana Akufo-Addo’s convoy passed, virtually came to a standstill, and it took the NPP flag bearer nearly one and half hours to cover the one kilometer stretch to the Jackson Park to address the crowd.
Nana Akufo-Addo who was accompanied by Messrs Yaw Osafo-Maafo, Hackman Owusu Agyeman, all of who competed for the party’s flagbearership with him, Madam Grace Omaboe, a radio and television talk show presenter, the Eastern Regional Chairman of the party, Mr Gyekye Amoabeng, and other party officials, said he was overwhelmed by the size of the crowd.
He said he was not surprised about the huge turn out because of the good works of the NPP Government headed by President Kufour, which according to him had won the confidence of the people and had therefore decided to rally behind the party to win the December elections.
According to Nana Akufo-Addo, 19 years of bad administration of the National Democratic Congress nearly collapsed Ghana’s economy which had now been revived by the NPP within a short period of seven years.
He stated that it would therefore be in the interest of the people to vote for the retention of the NPP to enable the party to complete its development agenda.
“At the time we took over in January 2001, the country’s foreign exchange reserve was only $235 million and the economy was on the verge of collapse but we have managed within a seven-year period to increase the figure to $2.6 billion”, he stated to a thunderous applause from the gathering.
On education, he debunked a statement by officials of the NDC that his administration would not be able to make it free at the senior high school level, and explained that since the Kufour Administration had been able to make it free at both the primary and junior high school level, he would also be able to do that at the senior high level.
“Never again will children of poor parentage be deprived of education, and our policies will make it possible for such children to climb the academic ladder to develop their full talents to move society forward”, he stated.
Earlier, Nana Akufo Addo addressed similar gatherings at Nsawam and Suhum, where he said his administration would continue to give the necessary assistance to cocoa farmers to increase production which currently stood at about 700,000 tons to one million tons within a short period.
Nana Akufo-Addo who introduced all the party’s parliamentary candidates in the areas he visited called on the people to vote for them to win their seats.
He also promised to institute a pension scheme for cocoa farmers.
Messrs Yaw Osafo Maafo, Felix Owusu Agyepong, Kwabena Agyepong as well as Madam Grace Omaboe took turns to canvass votes for the party.
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