Nkawkaw, May 9, GNA - Mr Kofi Akpaloo, a presidential aspirant for the Independent People's Party (IPP), on Monday urged the Government to set up a national development company for Ghanaians at home and abroad to be shareholders to raise billions of dollars to support development efforts.

Mr Akpaloo noted that the nation's shares in the oil and gold industries were wholly inadequate and constituted a sell-out of the nation's natural resources to foreign investors.

Mr Akpaloo was speaking to the media and supporters of the party at Nkawkaw to unveil his vision for the nation's development.

He said he is a God-sent to deliver Ghanaians from the hardship, poverty and unemployment inflicted on Ghanaians by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parties.

Mr Akpaloo said the nation would be one of the richest in the world if human and natural resources were properly developed.

He promised to support the private sector with the needed capital in order to create employment for the people.

Mr Akpaloo said skill training and professional advancement would be promoted under his Government should he wins the presidential race in 2012.

He said small-scale miners, popularly known as "galamsey" operators would be mobilized and assisted under the Public Private Partnership agreement to raise funds to establish a locally large scale mining company in the country.

Mr Akpaloo, a professional accountant, based in the UK, said the party would soon be launched in Accra and in the other regions to mobilize supporters and elect parliamentary candidates to contest next year's election.

The National Campaign Manager of the party, Mr Charles Agya Owusu, said the electorates were accepting the party's message of putting their fortunes in their own hands.

He advised Ghanaians to change their way of voting and give the party a chance to transform the nation to improve the living standards of the people.

**

* *