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| Captain Kojo Tsikata with Yaw Appiah Kubi |
By Duke Tagoe
Yaw Appiah Kubi,
a Social Democrat and an aspiring Member of Parliament is causing waves in the
Akropong constituency of the Eastern Region amongst both the NDC and NPP
supporters. Indeed the young political activist who served as an assemblyman in
the Osaebrom electoral area is seen as a fresh entrant into the political scene
whose exploits as a clean, honest and ''can do politician has been unparalleled
in the district since the inception of the District Assembly concept.
The aspiring
parliamentary candidate for the NDC slot has promised to deliver the
constituency to the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the upcoming
general elections of 2016, a feat which has never happened since 1996 when the
NPP first took part in the parliamentary election in that constituency
Big
wigs of the party are believed to be gearing up to put their weight behind his
candidature should he win the primaries of November 7.
Mr
Appiah Kubi has followed the party since his days at the Central University
College and is believed to have studied at the feet of giants like Captain Kojo
Tsikata, Dr Omane Boamah, Mr Ato Ahwoi, Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Mr Kojo
Twum Boafo and the late Professor Ansa Asamoah.
According to the
former Assembly Member, he would exploit the huge potential of the Public-Private
Partnership initiatives of government as well as the potential of the community
to bring potable water to Akropong and its surrounding environs and this he
started as an Assemblyman when he mobilized the community and private sector to
bring cheap water to the people of Akropong.
Mr Appiah-Kubi
has called on the teeming youths of the NDC across the country to mobilize an
unprecedented number of votes to knock out the NPP’s flag bearer in the
elections of next year.
In
an interview with this reporter, he explained that the World Bank and other
development partners of Ghana have absolute confidence in the administration of
President John Dramani Mahama adding that the foundations have been laid for
the take off and the absolute transformation of the Ghanaian economy.
“The
Mahama fever has not only caught Ghana but the entire region of West Africa. President
Mahama has become a beacon of hope for young men and women in Ghana and in
Africa” he said.
According
to the NDC parliamentary aspirant President Mahama is at the forefront in the
fight against terrorism and was instrumental in bringing peace to La Cote
d’Ivoire, the Gambia and in Burkina Faso following the ouster of Blaise
Campoare and the recent attempted coup by the Presidential Guards. He revealed
that the Ghanaian President led the way in drafting a road map for peace in
that country.
Asked about his
stance on the recent bailout of the government by the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) he explained that “Europe was bailed out after the Second World War
for infrastructural development and it continues to do so.”
According to him
even Portugal and Greece have all been bailed out adding that Ghana is a member
of the IMF in good standing and nothing must prevent the Mahama administration
from seeking a bailout from them.
In reference to
some historical event in Ghana he said that “Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, founder
of the Republic of Ghana, borrowed from International banks to build the
Akosombo Dam in order to kick start the industrial revolution that was bitterly
truncated by the predecessors of NPP and even more disturbing, in spite of the
fifty percent increment in the price of fuel, water and electricity tariffs and
the privatization of strategic national assets in the first year of the Kufuor
government in which Akufo Addo served as Attorney General and Foreign Minister,
the NPP still managed to hang a chain of HIPC around the neck of Ghana”
In
a sharp rebuttal to claims made by the NPP that the NDC has borrowed
excessively from the World Bank and the IMF, he said that although the NPP are quick to refer to
the United States as an economic power house, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest
has warned that the United States will not be able to pay its bills and to
provide water and electricity for its people if the US Congress does not
increase the country’s debt ceiling by November 3.
He
argued that in spite of the assurances by the NPP to wean off its mouth from
the breast of the World Bank, it still took loans from them and had nothing to
show for until it left power.
He made reference
to the construction of school buildings, major road networks, the development
of the agricultural sector and a stable economy as some of the aims of the
recent bailout sought by the Mahama administration.
Nana
Yaw is believed to be entering the race with an immense knowledge and
experience in Local Government and grassroots mobilization.
Little
doubt remain that Yaw Appiah Kubi is on his way to winning the parliamentary
primaries of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Akropong
constituency on November 7.
IVORIAN OPPOSITION BOYCOTTS ELECTION
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| Officials of the FPI mmets in Accra |
By
Duke Nii Amartey Tagoe
Ivorian
Popular Front (FPI), the largest opposition party in La Cote d’I voire, has
called for a boycott of the general elections scheduled for 25th
October.
They
are also calling for an end to the state of terror and tyranny by the Western
backed regime of Alhassane Quattara, the immediate release of all political
prisoners and a halt to the detention of President Laurent Gbagbo.
On
the 11th of April 2011, rebel groups loyal to Ouattara supported by a
combined team of French and UN soldiers and some armed mercenaries from Burkina
Faso kidnapped President Laurent Gbagbo at the Presidential Palace in Abidjan.
A
few days before Gbagbo was abducted, more than 1000 people in Duekoue had been
slaughtered by the by Alhassane Quattara’s armed rebel group, The New Forces,
as they moved from the North to South.
The
abduction of the Ivorian President was followed by a series of demonstrations
in many West African states with many human right campaigners calling for an
end to the persecution and human right violations.
Speaking
at a forum held in Accra, Emile Guirieoulou, a former minister of Public
Service and Employment and Chairman of FPI coordination in Exile explained that
credible elections could not be held when more than a hundred thousand
(100,000) Ivoirians are spread across refugee camps in the sub-region with
another thousand supporters of the FPI believed to be languishing in gaols
across Ivory Coast.
According
to Damana Picas, Vice President of FPI in charge of Youth, “credible elections
cannot take place whilst genuine reconciliation has not been achieved. He
cautioned that “Majority of Ivoirians recognize Gbagbo as their leader and it
is impossible to achieve genuine reconciliation in La Cote d’Ivoire under the
given circumstances so as long as peace talks have not started and Gbagbo is
being held in The Hague against the wishes of the people.”
A
former Finance minister, Kone Katina bemoaned the crackdown of press freedom
and condemned the privatization of state banks to French finance corporations.
He is convinced that the privatization of state owned institutions will only
create troops of jobless youth and deepen the poverty of the indigenous people.
The
Ivorian people have also suffered shocking exploitation of their resources
under the regime of Alhassane Quattara. Former Minister of Forest and Water,
Lazare Kofi, has revealed that more than 125,000 acres of land cultivated by
farmers have been grabbed or taken over by foreign multinational corporations.
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| Kwesi Pratt Jnr |
Mr
Kwesi Pratt Jnr. Editor of The Insight and Convener of the Socialist Forum
assured the FPI of the full solidarity of progressive forces in Ghana.
He
said the struggle of the FPI is a continuation of the African revolution which
was initiated by great Africans like Amilcar Cabral, Sekou Toure, Patrice
Lumumba and Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah.
“We
are fully conscious of the consequences the people of La Cote d’Ivoire are facing
and we are aware that these conditions have been imposed on the people of La
Cote d’Ivoire by the French colonialist and other imperialist forces acting in
collaboration with the local forces of reaction in La Cote d’Ivoire.
“Your
struggle is like our struggle and it is like the struggle of the patriotic
forces in Africa. It is a struggle to assert our sovereignty. It is a struggle
to assert the fact that African resources ought to be exploited to the benefit
of all African people,” he pointed out.
He
said President Laurent Gbagbo is not facing trial because he is a criminal, but
because he is an African patriot who dedicated his entire life to the
liberation of African people from poverty and squalor.
“This
is a struggle for the freedom of President Laurent Gbagbo, it is a struggle for
the freedom of all those who have been unjustly imprisoned by the reactionary
forces in La Cote d’I voire adding that he continued detention of President
Laurent Gbagbo is intrinsically liked with the attempt of foreign forces to
take control of African resources and to exploit those resources for the
benefit imperial power,” he added.
According
to him, so many things which are strange have happened in La Cote d’Ivoire. He
explained that although all the human rights organizations in the world testify
to the fact that the rebel forces ( New Forces) led by Alhassane Quattara
committed heinous atrocities, it is rather the
legitimate government of La Cote d’I voire and it leaders who have been
arrested and imprisoned and not the rebel forces.
Mr Pratt said that the continuing trial of
President Laurent Gbagbo by the International Criminal Court when the court
itself had come to the conclusion that there is no evidence to warrant the
trial and conviction Gbagbo is a travesty of justice.
Editorial
EBOLA
Newly
confirmed cases of the Ebola Virus disease has been reported in Liberia
claiming one life and leaving two others in severe conditions.
Between
the years 2014 and early 2015 the virus has claimed the lives of more than
eleven thousand people in West Africa.
We
are deeply worried that in spite of the assurances from the Ministry of Health
of Liberia and the World Health Organisation, the virus can still be found
lurking in the dark.
Hundreds
of cattle have also been reported dead in remote areas of the country raising
suspicion that the virus can be transmitted through other agents.
We
call on health authorities in West African states and in Ghana especially to
maintain vigilance and monitor the situation in order to avoid any major
outbreaks.
We
acknowledge the contributions of Cuba and several other countries which are in
the forefront in the struggle to rid Africa and West Africa from the scourge of
the Ebola virus.
The
struggle is not over but we shall surely win.
