General News of Tuesday, 13 November 2007

Source: Network Herald

Owusu Ankomah has failed us - Sekondi residents

Residents of Sekondi in the Western region have vowed to set the records straight with regard to the quest of their Member of Parliament to be president.

They insisted that as custodians of the legendary "Bottom tree" that fought for the independence of the country, they should champion the accountability and integrity of politicians who continue to take the people for granted.

They therefore dared Papa Owusu Ankomah to explain to them why he should not be rejected, having failed to make any meaningful contributions towards bettering the lives of the people he represents in parliament and also explain to them whose bidding it is for him to become president of the Republic of Ghana.

While Paa Kojo, renowned musician of Hossana Hill who describes himself as a hustler demanded from his MP, an account of his stewardship in the past ten or so years, Madam Araba Tagoe, a well known figure in the dying town told Network Herald that it should not be possible for Papa to offer himself to be president at this time.

According to her, it is unimaginable that someone who cannot boldly account to the people of the Sekondi Constituency his stewardship in terms of projects executed since becoming their MP can attempt vying to lead the country as a president.

"What do they take us for, uneducated simpletons?" she charged.

Mad. Tagoe who is also the Deputy Western Regional Women's Organizer of the NDC called into the offices of the Network Herald at Takoradi to condemn the MP for reneging on all his promises to the people of Sekondi and wondered how he could imagine himself ruling the country when he could not ensure any development project in his constituency for almost eleven years.

According to her, as a Member of Parliament with the then minority between 1996 and 2000, Papa Owusu Ankoma criticized the Albert Bosomtwi Sam Fishing Harbour at Sekondi as an unnecessary project and promised to undertake bigger and better projects for Sekondi when his party assumed power.

However, after seven years, Papa Owusu Ankoma has not provided any meaningful physical project for the people of Sekondi apart from a moribund Post Office Project for which he cut sod but which is yet to see the light of day.

She also questioned how a caring Member of Parliament could part with ¢250 million as a filing fee and spend billions on his campaign when almost all school buildings in his constituency were crying for help.

Mad. Tagoe also condemned the handling of the vetting of the Vice President which she said was a calculated attempt to destroy his chances of winning since he is seen as a threat to the perceived favorites of the powers that be.

On rumours making the rounds that the Vice President has no identity card as a member of the NPP, she said if it should be taken as the truth, then NPP as a party should explain to Ghanaians how he became a Vice President but cannot be President.