General News of Thursday, 13 October 2005

Source: daily dispatch.

My hometown folks dislike me - Quashigah

Health minister, Major Courage Quashigah says since he joined the New Patriotic Party-NPP, he had suffered from much resentment from people of his hometown and region.

The health minister said since he joined the party, his people had not taken it kindly at all just because they do not have interest in the party. According to him the acts of divisiveness and hatred had torn the people of the Volta Region apart and that had marred the progress in the area.

Major Quarshigah said there are many chieftaincy disputes and tribal segregation in the region and until they merge forces, allow unity and sanity to prevail, no progress would be made.

He was speaking at the annual Volta Region Students Association of Ghana (VORSAG) branch at the University of Cape Coast (UCC) at Cape Coast last week.

The health minister who was addressing hundreds of students from the Volta Region, said the conflict between Tsito and Alavanyo is very disturbing as it impedes progress in the region and the areas involved respectively.

He advised the students to overlook the unnecessary discrimination between Ashanti?s and Ewes because the two tribes intermarry and for that matter, have become a family, so there is no reason for squabbles and hatred.

He said the students had a crucial role to play in fostering unity, peace and tranquility in the region through the academic experience they have achieved so that they can diffuse the tension in the region.

President of the VORSAG, UCC branch, Nicholas Gborse said the region, which is home to almost all ethnic groupings in the country, have over the years used politics, tribalism, sectionalism and chieftaincy disputes, to create scores of conflicts and disunity among themselves.