Regional News of Wednesday, 26 September 2012

Source: Francis Owusu-Ansah, Storm FM,Sunyani

Dormaa Chief calls for national ideological institute

The
Twafohene of Dormaa Akwamu in the Brong-Ahafo region, Nana Amokona Nimpong, has
suggested the establishment of a national ideological institute to train
politicians to enable them make holistic contribution to national development.
The
national ideological institute, to be modeled after the Kwame Nkrumah
Ideological Institute, would ensure that prospective politicians acquire
adequate knowledge in basic national ideologies and philosophies before they
are given the mandate to rule.
Nana
Nimpong told Storm FM in Sunyani that “graduates from the proposed national
ideological institute would not be biased towards their political parties but
rather see development from the national perspective and not their party’s
point of view”.
Nana Nimpong, who was a former Brong-Ahafo regional Treasurer of the ruling
NDC, noted that “as it is today, most politicians do not have any ideology,
they just run on tickets of any political they like and when they are in
office, they do not have anything to offer the nation”.
He added
that a center for research into alternative national ideologies must also be
considered urgently to enable every political office holder render services
using at least one of such ideologies.
“Because we
do not have any center that research into national ideologies, political office
holders have taken the people for granted, not knowing how to properly develop
the country”, he said. Nana Nimpong noted that because of the lack proper
nationalistic training for politicians, most of them do not even know how to
relate well with the very people who gave them power.
“Look
around and you see most politicians exhibiting poor human relations after they
have gained power from their own people”, he said and added that if
“politicians do not know how to live and relate to people because of power,
then they should aspire to gain power in the first place”.
He expressed
worry about how majority of politicians exhibit great humility when they need
power only to grow horns after they are given the mandate. “Some politicians
are always within coverage begging for our votes but immediately they get
power, their phones are out of coverage”, he said. "This practice must
cease if we are to make any headway", he added.