Editorial News of Tuesday, 5 February 2002

Source: --

NPP's budget is made in USA - Kofi Wayo

(The Crusading Guide) -- A leading member of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Kofi Wayo, is in the news again. This time round, the man, whose utterances always spark off huge controversy, has indicated that contrary to the expectation of many Ghanaians, the NPP’s fiscal policy (budget) is packaged in the United States’ capital, Washington D.C., and imposed on the country.

According to him, by inference, the NPP is pursuing policies similar to those chartered by its predecessor, the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), which had brought nothing, but untold hardships to the good people of this country.

Mr Wayo was speaking during an interview on “Radio Mercury” (91.5 FM), a Kumasi based private Frequency Modulation (FM) station in one of its Breakfast Shows hosted by Ekow Mensah. He said since such policies were not in the interest of Ghanaians, President J.A. Kufuor should move away from them and look elsewhere, saying the government should not allow the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to dictate to the country, on how it should manage the economy.

Mr Wayo, who contested the 2000 parliamentary election on the ticket of the NPP in the Ayawaso East Constituency in the Greater Accra Region and lost, asked President Kufuor to sack any Minister whose performance is below expectation within a period of 90 days.

He said this can be done by, perhaps, on monthly basis and anyone found not to be making any meaningful impact, should be, without hesitation, given the sack, adding that there are thousands of other Ghanaians who are competent enough outside the NPP or the government who, when given the chance, can turn things around overnight.

Mr Wayo, who claimed to be acting in the supreme interest of the NPP in particular and Ghana at large, questioned the government’s reluctance in reducing fuel prices in the country at the time the price of crude oil on the world market had gone down drastically.

As to whether he was not criticizing the government simply because he had so far not been given any key position in President Kufuor’s administration, Mr Wayo noted that all that he does has always been in line with the government’s “Zero Tolerance for Corruption” policy.

“By keeping quiet on pressing issues when I can offer credible suggestions and possible solutions, will be doing a very great disservice to myself and the entire people of this country and Ghana as whole, hence my periodic contributions for good governance”, he pointed out.