General News of Wednesday, 2 September 2020

Source: 3news.com

I have my failings but tribalism not part of them - Akufo-Addo

President Nana Akufo-Addo President Nana Akufo-Addo

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has said he is not a tribalist as some persons are painting him to be.

He said although he has his weaknesses, tribalism has never been part of his life and, therefore, asked that those who promote ethnic sentiments and divisions should be rejected.

“No one who is committed to the Ghana Project, as I am, can have an ethnic agenda. Rather, we should shun all those who would promote ethnic sentiments and divisions amongst us for selfish, partisan, political ends.

“There are people from this region, some of whom are well known to you here in Amedzofe, who serve in sensitive parts of my government and influence decisions on a daily basis. I may have my own failings like we all do, but being a tribalist is not one of them,” President Akufo-Addo said on Tuesday, September 1, when he commissioned the Five Piped Water Supply System in Amedzofe for 69,000 residents of three districts in the Volta Region.

Addressing the gathering at Amedzofe, in the Ho West District, he stated that if there is one person who recognises and appreciates the indivisibility of Ghana, it is him, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

“In my time as President, development has been distributed equitably to all parts of the country, and the impact of our policies has been felt by all. So, I want to assure all of you that neither the NPP nor I have any plan whatsoever to bring division to any part of the country,” he said.

He continued, “We do not have an ethnic agenda against any group or grouping in the country, and, certainly, we have no ethnic agenda against residents of the Volta Region.”

President Akufo-Addo stressed again that the Volta Region was not and has not been singled out for any special military operation.

“The deployment of the military personnel along our borders is an ongoing nationwide exercise, and has been done across all our borders, and not in the Volta Region alone. One thousand soldiers are the subject of this deployment, of which 163 are based along the borders of Volta,” he said.

The President noted that, “their presence is to guard against potential terrorist attacks on our shores and to prevent the importation of the virus into our country. They have not been stationed at our borders to execute any political or ethnic agenda.”

To residents of the Volta Region, President Akufo-Addo reiterated his determination to “keep knocking on the door until the door is opened to me until the Volta Region and the NPP are married. I know that this constituency, Ho West, will one day revert to being a stronghold for the NPP as it once was for the United Party (UP)”.