General News of Tuesday, 6 May 2003

Source:  

Rawlings and Mills Address Demonstrators

Speaking at the Hearts of Oak Training Grounds, where the demonstrators converged, Professor Mills said NPP has no heart for the ordinary Ghanaian.

He said the demonstration is a peaceful way the people of Ghana are using to express their protest against the manner in which the government is managing the economy. Prof. Mills said the hardships in the country show that the NPP is fumbling in its handling of the economy. He stated that the government is running the country with utmost arrogance, which he said would not help strengthen democracy.

Prof Mills said the NPP is full of deception and it has demonstrated this in their inability to fulfil their electioneering campaign promises. He said everyone is a witness to the hardship in the country and the devastating trend of affairs in the country. He urged the rank and file of the party to work hard to strengthen the party to enable them to wrest power in 2004 elections.

Ex-President Rawlings on his part said corruption has infiltrated all facets of the current government saying that the judicial system has been tampered with, while the state of the economy is in a rather deplorable state. He said we must be prepared to defy what we perceive to be wrong and put the right system in place.

Ex-President Rawlings said the NDC is committed to doing politics in the most principled manner, to bring relief to the good people of Ghana adding that this demonstration signifies that as a party, we believe in peace, unity and stability. He asked Ghanaians to rally massively behind the NDC in the next elections so that the party could emerge winner.

The Party Chairman, Dr Asamoah asked the people to examine their lives and find out if the present conditions are satisfactory. He said if the people could not secure gainful employment, are without accommodation; not able to feed their families and were also not in the position to pay school fees, then it is high time they make a reasonable decision to help to better their lot.