Accra (Greater Accra) 30 Dec. '99 - Mr S.A. Odoi-Sykes, National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), said on Thursday that members of the party have been their worst enemy in 1999 and urged them to conduct their affairs next year with greater circumspection. In a New Year message he noted: "We have carried to unaccepted degree our traditional freedom of speech and dissent. "Let us exercise our traditional freedom of speech and dissent with greater sense of responsibility."

Mr Odoi-Sykes said the party has been unable to take full advantage of the time and opportunities available to it due to logistic constraints. Consequently, many of their supporters and members have become "restive and harshly critical." "They are rightly demanding sustained political action that can assure them of victory." The NPP chairman said the "silent majority" of Ghanaians are hoping that the party would deliver them from their long period of suffering.

He said in spite of everything, the NPP is entering the year 2000 as a party, which enjoys the most popular genuine support and tremendous goodwill. "The greatest challenge facing the party today is whether we shall be able to translate the overwhelming support and goodwill of Ghanaians into an electoral victory in the year 2000." He reminded them that to achieve this objective would require hard work, discipline and unity of all members. Mr Odoi-Sykes said the NPP would launch an "all-out non-stop" campaign for the 2000 elections in the first quarter of the year adding that adequate logistics shall be provided to enable the party campaign effectively throughout the country.

"Ghanaians are yearning for a change from the intolerable hardship, poverty, unprecedented corruption and general economic mismanagement under 18 years of (P)NDC rule. The Rawlings era shall go down as the most controversial." Mr Odoi-Sykes said it is "extraordinary" that President Jerry Rawlings should personally appeal to the Queen of Britain and the World Bank to come to Ghana's aid in checking corruption.

He commended NPP parliamentarians for their "brilliant performance in the year." "In spite of their overwhelming disadvantage in numbers, they have performed very creditably as a patriotic opposition."