Press Conference By The Committee For Joint Action On The Continuing Hardships Being Inflicted On Ghanaians

Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen and welcome.

The NPP government has indeed demonstrated that is insensitive to the plight of the people of Ghana who are suffering the harsh effect of recklessness in the formulation and implementation of policy inspite of widespread wailing and gnashing of teeth, the Kufuor administration has imposed more hardship on the people.

On the 1st November, 2007 the NPP Government increased Petroleum product prices for the fifth time this year. Since the NPP Government assumed the reigns of power in January 2001, the prices of Petroleum products have been increased astronomically. Petrol prices, for example, have been increased by about 700% from the December 2000 price of ?6400 per gallon to ?44,000 per gallon today. On the same day (November 1, 2007), the government callously increased water and electricity tariffs by a whopping 35% on the average as if the pain threshold

Ladies and gentlemen of the press, after suffering the indignity of sleeping in darkness for over one year, after enduring the hardships associated with load shedding, after so many people had lost their lives on the hospital operating tables as a result of the NPP government?s incompetence in handling the electric power crisis the government is inflicting more avoidable hardship on the innocent people of Ghana whose only crime is that they voted for a government which has woefully failed to address the social and economic problems of the people.

What have Ghanaians done to deserve such an incompetent, insensitive and unimaginative government?

Ladies and gentlemen of the Press, never in the history of this country has a government imposed so much hardship on its citizens. Parents cannot pay the high school fees charged at all levels of the educational ladder; mothers are detained as prisoners at hospitals after childbirth because they cannot pay the hospital fees, workers are being ejected from their rented homes because they cannot afford the high rents and unrealistic rent advances being charged by landlords; our youth cannot get jobs and are reduced to selling toothpicks and chewing gum by the roadside and in the middle of the road. Simply put, life is very hard. So hard that some mothers have resorted to selling their own children, children they carried in their wombs for 9 months for a paltry ?200,000. Life is so hard that our mothers, sisters and daughters dare not walk on the streets for fear of being mugged. Life is so hard that armed robbery in our homes and on the highways, on the streets is now the order of the day.

Whilst the majority of Ghanaians are finding life absolutely unbearable a few politicians and lackeys of the NPP government are swimming in fabulous wealth. Some NPP Presidential aspirants can raise ?13 billion during a four hour fund raising event. Some NPP Presidential aspirants can donate as much as 230 motor cycles for distribution the constituencies. Other NPP Presidential aspirants have distributed billions of cedis to delegates to buy their votes. Sons and daughters of NPP politicians buy US$8 million hotels, give tithes of over ?80 million to their churches from loans which their fathers used their influence to secure for them which loans they have not repaid. Within 4 years of being appointed ministers of state, some of the NPP members have in their bank accounts over US$110,000, Euro31000, 15,000 Pounds Sterling and ?250 million. In less than two years, a Minister and a member of the NPP had deposited ?2billion in his bank account when his salary and allowances are less than ?30million a month.

The plush posh houses which have sprang up at Trasacco Valley, Cantonments, Ridge etc which cost a minimum of US$350,000 are owned by NPP officials, aspirants, lackeys and hangers on. How were these assets acquired? As was revealed in the recent Public Accounts Committee hearings, graft, greed, corruption and stealing from the public coffers has been a major source of financing the expensive lifestyles of politicians, public officials and their hangers on. Whiles the rich get richer the majority of the people are being bled to death.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, the NPP government continues to foment trouble and create tensions in the country. The NPP Government looked on unconcerned, ignored warning signals until the Ya-Na and 40 of his elders were murdered in cold blood; the Sefwi Wiawso township has been under military occupation for over 30 months as a result of a chieftaincy dispute. The installation of the Ga Mantse has brought in its wake tensions and agitation in the Ga state. Just last week, the government looked on unconcerned until five citizens lost their lives before rushing to court to secure an injunction in the Anlo Chieftaincy affair. Why does our government always wait till precious lives of Ghanaians are lost and blood spilled before they act? The Anlo Chieftaincy crisis will get worse if arrogant people like the Volta Regional Police Commander whose actions, words and attitude are unprofessional is allowed to stay in office. The CJA calls for the immediate dismissal of the Volta Regional Police Commander.

The NPP government which has the knack for fomenting trouble has done it again. Instead of using the time tested method of involving the Electoral Commission in the demarcation of districts and creation of municipal and Metropolitan Assemblies it decided on its own without consulting the Electoral Commission to create new districts, Municipal and Metropolitan Assemblies. The end result is that confusion and mayhem has broken out. The people of Ashaiman and Adenta are at each others throat; daggers have been drawn between Weija and Gbawe residents; Nsoatre residents are opposed to the citing of the Sunyani West District at Odumasi. Funds which could have been used to build schools, hospitals and to pay decent salaries, are now going to be used to settle these avoidable chieftaincy and district creation crisis.

The government has been increasing prices of goods and services astronomically without considering how the citizens manage to meet their ever increasing expenditure. Salaries paid to workers do not last for even one week. Workers of Ghana are perpetually in debt.

Ladies and gentlemen, the NPP government recently introduced a Capitation Grant of ?30,000 per annum or ?2,500 per month per child. According to the Government and NPP propagandist this monthly ?2500 capitation grant has so worked wonders that parents are rushing to enroll their children at school and that classrooms are bursting at their seams. Dear Pressmen, if ?2500 per month is all it takes for parent to rush to enroll their children at school then the level of poverty is very frightening. We ought to take cognizance of the fact that this year petrol, prices have been increased by 25%. The prices of LPG have shot up by 35% and electricity tarrifs for the very poor who use less than 50 kwhr of electricity a month has been increased by 140% from 4,000 cedis a month to 9,500 per month.

In the light of this, the parent who receives ?2500 per month Capitation grant now has to pay a minimum of ?10,000 per month for water and electricity alone.

? Ghanaians have tolerated the hardships imposed on them by the NPP for too long. ? Ghanaians have tolerated the impudence and arrogance of the NPP government for too long. ? Ghanaians have tolerated the corruption of the NPP government for too long. ? Ghanaians have tolerated the looting of the national coffers by the NPP government for too long. ? Ghanaians have tolerated the NPP government?s decision not to account to the people of Ghana for too long.

We must put a stop to these brazing acts of the NPP government by demonstrating our revulsion at an unaccountable and irresponsible government. We must send a clear and loud message to all politicians and public officials that Ghanaians can no longer be taken for a ride. Conscious of the peoples yearning for change, the CJA has decided to provide an appropriate vehicle for mass mobilization against hardship, abuse of office and open thievery of national resources.

We announce that we would hold a massive demonstration on Tuesday 11th December, 2007 to protest against the hardship, corruption, drug dealing, unemployment and official impunity which has engulfed the nation. The demonstration dubbed ?ye wuooo?, ?Agbe woeee? or ?we are being killed? protest march would be massive. It will start from the Kwame Nkrumah Circle at 9am and end at the Hearts Park in Accra. We call upon the democratic forces, the workers and the unemployed, men and women, farmers and teachers, taxi and trotro drivers and indeed all Ghanaians from all walks of life to join in this historic protest match against national decadence.

We will win the struggle against bad government.

Thank you for coming and you may now ask questions.

08/11/2007