Ghana has its priorities screwed up big time. Why am I saying this? Why is it that the free education policy as being proposed by the NPP Presidential candidate, Nana Akuffo Addo cannot be implemented due to financial constraints of our country but we have money to carve out 45 new constituencies? It is really ridiculous to listen to NDC, the paltering so called Social democrats kick aqainst the idea of free education but are adamant in having 45 new constituencies created that will cost the country at least 10 million dollars in remuneration to the MP's and staff, benefits, retirement package and bonuses per year. I have never in my life seen a Party like NDC that does not live up to its beliefs.

Ghana already spends 46% of its yearly revenue in salaries alone to government Employees and we are going to add more to it with the creation of 45 Districts and 45 constituencies which will not improve the lives of its citizens in anyway. There is no developed country on God green Earth that spends more than 10% of its revenue on salaries to government Employees. United States of America spends less than 2% of Federal budget on salaries to federal Employees. Germany, Britain, France, Swden, Switzerland spends less than 5% of its budget on salsries for government Employees and instead of Ghana cutting down on unecessary increase in government spending on salaries, we are going to add more people whose services will not improve the lives of Ghanaians.Why can't we learn from these developed countries and continue to do things as if we have no grey matter in our skulls?

Education is the bedrock of every successful nation and that blueprint has been followed by every successful nation on Earth so why are we as a nation kicking against that idea? The Pessimists in NDC and their supporters are well aware that, a nation of educated citizens as compared to a nation of illiterates is better even with high unemployment rate. Nations like Japan,Korea, Singapore and other emerging economic giants in Asia have few natural resources but due to educated citizens have been able to develop their countries with technological know how, what is African countries and Ghana in particular waiting for? Why are we not learning from the Asian countries? We have all the resources as a small country but due to lack of education and the corrupt attitude of our leaders, this country of ours continue to be mired in poverty, WHY?

The idea that the country is not ready for free high school education until 2032 is very ridiculous coming from a party like NDC that touts its social democratic credentials but is worse than any property owning Party on earth. As a social democratic Party, what social intervention programme has been implemented by NDC in its twenty three years at the helm of the country?

The so called social democrats sold more than 300 state owned manufacturing companies and corporations to themselves and their cronies like the Mangoase fisheries to P.V Obeng and the Cash Pro to the Ahwoi brothers whilst Abosso Glass factory was given to the Togolese Gilchrist Olympio and Konadu Agyeman Rawlings took Ghanacan as a wedding gift. Are these the people who adhere to the tenets of social democracy? The leaders of NDC howled like pigs on their way to the slaughter house about the corruption of NPP leaders but now look at how these "JOROMI" and "AFRO MOSES" wearing Socialists with their unkept beards have found their way to the Italian clothing stores and have turned into the worst capitalists having stolen enough to build mansions and acquire the best cars money can buy even by some of them who were living under their parents roof and never worked a day in their lives. How anybody in their right mind can support such thieves is beyond me. The NPP government has been accused of being a property owning party but every social intervention programme since the fourth republic has been introduced by the NPP.

The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) programme that eliminated the killer CASH and CARRY NDC programme.The free maternity part of this programme has cut down the high levels of maternity deaths in the country.

The National Youth Employment Programme(NYEP) that trains the Youth and prepare them for the job market which has put more than 200,000 Ghanaians into jobs was introduced by NPP.

The Metro Mass system programme

The Free Lunch programme

GETFUND

The free mass cocoa spraying programme.

What has NDC as a Social Democratic Party done for the country in terms of social programmes? The free exercise and free uniform scheme with most of the beneficiaries in urban centers instead of our rural folks who need the help? 35% of the free uniform programme is given to schools in the Accra Metropolitan area. This is a programme supposedly enacted to help the poor rural folks and more than a third of this programme is given to Accra, the richest urban area in Ghana.

Why is NDC fighting against free education? NDC want an illiterate populace to lord over and one can see it from their supporters. It does not want an educated class that can look at issues and make decisions based on informed evidence instead of emotions. The excuse that free education means inferior quality is just plain nonsense. We depend on Cubans to augument our Physician needs and CUBA can do this because of free education to the University level so why are we fighting tooth and nail to scuttle this good idea that can help everybody in the country? NDC has been organizing their supporters to come out and kick against free education because they see this single NPP policy as a threat to their holding on to power.We have been told that the Makola women are against free education because they have money to pay their wards school fees and we all know that is not true. This was a pure fabrication by NDC which has seen the popularity of this programme even one of their MP's said that, if NDC lose the elections, it will be due to the free education policy by the NPP.NDC is against this policy not because it is not achievable but purely on political grounds.

NDC has to realise that, because it could not implement its one time premium paying policy does not mean we cannot implement free secondary school education for Ghanaians. In NDC pantheon of thinking, free education is not possible because of the financial aspect of it but if they will stop giving our money away to people like Woyome in the form of settlement debts, financing this programme will not be a daunting task as they see it.

Justice Sarpong

Houston, Texas

(CARDINAL of TRUTH)