Agona-Duakwa (C/R), Oct. 14, GNA - A New York-based Ghanaian Attorney, Mr Theophilus Fuseini Maranga, has blamed the country's protracted economic woes on the past government's failure to take bold steps to reactivate and maintain agriculture in the country.

He said it did not develop further the giant agricultural projects, which were bequeathed to the nation by the first President, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah.

"Unless the next government has the necessary political will to take the bull by the horn to initiate a strong forward-driven agricultural programmes, Ghana's chances to secure a lasting solution to its mounting economic and other social problems will continue to persist," he warned. Mr Maranga, who is contesting the Agona-East constituency seat as an independent candidate, was speaking to the Ghana News Agency after addressing a group of teeming supporters at Agona Duakwa on Wednesday.

According to Mr Maranga, he would formally launch his manifesto at Agona-Duakwa on October 16 to outlines his plans for the people in the Agona-East constituency and the nation as a whole.

He said the time has come for Ghanaians to blush aside partisan sentiments that did not produce any meaningful economic gains to push the nation forward and develop a strong unified and positive mind that would enable us to effectively transform the nation through pragmatic agricultural programmes.

Mr Maranga cited neighbouring Cote D'Ivoire, whose pragmatic agricultural policies made her economic giant in West Africa before the internal crisis. He contended that, the first president of that country initiated these useful agricultural policies.

Mr. Maranga maintained that, if succeeding governments had boldly taken the trouble to reactivate, maintain and further developed various promising agricultural and other viable economic ventures that were left in the various parts of the country after the overthrow of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in 1966, the nation would have been in a much better economic situation by now.

He firmly believed that through effective and sustained agricultural programmes, the problem of increasing unemployment, abject poverty, child trafficking, child labour, armed robbery and other anti-social and crime waves could be successfully tackled in no time. Mr Maranga, a law graduate of the University of Ghana, Legon and the University of Georgia in the United States, said, when he wins the election on December 7, he would establish a big livestock and citrus farms in the Agona District to give employment to the youth in the area. He has plans also to establish a computer-training institute in the district to boost basic and secondary education, and also bring in reliable African-American investors to set up factories to provide adequate jobs for the people.

Mr Maranga expressed optimism that if the youth were effectively and continuously sensitized on the numerous economic and social benefits that agriculture could offer them, they would wholeheartedly accept agriculture and pursue it to improve their living standards. He has therefore, asked electorates in the Agona-East to give him their mandate to enable him to help them realize their dreams. 14 Oct. 04