Politics of Saturday, 21 August 2004

Source: GNA

Mills advises Party supporters to eschew bad behaviour

Sampa (B/A), Aug. 21, GNA - Professor John Evans Atta Mills, National Democratic Congress (NDC) Flag Bearer has advised supporters of the Party, particularly the youth, to eschew behaviours that would mar Election 2004.

He said the Party was on the verge of winning the elections to continue with its development projects that had been abandoned by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Government.

This advice ran through his addresses at separate rallies at Chiraa, Buoku, Menji, Namasa, Debibi, Adamsu and Sampa in Brong Ahafo on the second day of his one-week tour of the Region.

He said the NDC was determined to ensure the equitable distribution of the country's wealth, taking into account the vulnerable and the needy and warned the people not to vote the NPP back to power, as that could spell the country's doom.

"The Kufuor Administration is a property-owning democracy, which has worsened the living standards of the ordinary citizen", he said.

Prof Mills advised NDC supporters to disregard the unguarded accusations and falsehood some NPP members had been peddling against the NDC, "because the NPP has disappointed Ghanaians and know that they have lost the elections in advance".

He explained that the 41 trillion cedis debt discovered after the NDC left the scene was accumulated from 1957, adding, for the past three years the NPP Government had borrowed 35 trillion cedis.

The NDC Flag Bearer asked Ghanaians, after tasting NDC administration for eight years and that of NPP for only three-and-a-half years, to assess the performance of the two parties in socio-economic development before giving their mandate in December.

"The NDC cherishes multi-party democracy and believes in democratic governance", he said, and called for a demonstration of civility, a high sense of maturity and responsibility during the polls. Mrs Cecilia Johnson, Former Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, said the NDC Government was committed to improving the living standards of the people and urged the electorate to vote the Party back to power to reduce poverty in the country. She called on other political parties to focus on the need for peace and unity to promote democracy and to ensure peaceful elections.