As President John Dramani Mahama stated in his interview with the Africawatch Magazine, the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP,) National Chairman, Jake Otanka Obetsebi-Lamptey has said that the 8 years of ex-President John Agyekum Kufuor’s administration could not transform the country, hence they needed more time.
Since the John Mahama led- National Democratic Congress (NDC) is on its first term of four years, it means that the NDC will need another 4 years to continue with the process of transforming Ghana, through the “Better Ghana Agenda”.
Below is an excerpt of the interview President Mahama granted Africawatch Magazine.
I think that in the short space of time we’ve had, I mean the three-and-a-half years we’ve been in power-compared with the Chairman of the NPP, Jake Obetsebi Lamptey’s own admission that eight years is not enough to achieve everything-I think that in the three-and-a-half years, we’ve performed phenomenally. In the area that matters the most, extension of rural electrification, I think that this government has done a phenomenal job.
In the Northern region alone 500 new Communities have been connected. In the upper east are being connected, in the Upper West 400 communities are being connected and in Brong Ahafo, 500 communities are being connected.
In the area of education, there has been massive infrastructural development. We have significant progress in eliminating schools under trees, provision of free exercise books and school uniforms.
The cotton sector has also received a major boost, industries that hitherto were not functioning have received the needed boost and are now doing quite well. At the economic front, the rate of inflation has remain a single digit over a relatively long period, our foreign exchange reserves have improved and as you may be aware the growth rate of the economy has been very impressive.
We had some challenges with the fall of the cedi against its major trading partners in the first half of the year but with prudent measures we are beginning to make headway. If you take provision of water as a result of the effects that we’ve made, we have eventually gotten rid of guinea worms in the country.
The last case of guinea worms was reported in 2010. Since 2010 there has been no incidence of guinea worms in Ghana. And that is because of the spread of potable water that we have achieved in this short period of time.
We’ve also made interventions in the health sector. District hospitals and poly-clinics are being built, and other health institutions are being improved. The achievements have been phenomenal in the three-and-a –half years, and so I guess that people at that level, recognize the work that this government has done. So when the time comes, they will vote positively.