As NDC launches its manifesto, I thought it might be helpful to demonstrate how meaningless the whole exercise is. Why? Well, all you need to do is go back to their 2008 manifesto and check their promises against what they have actually delivered. Here are NDC’s broken promises...

1. Establish a lean but effective and efficient government by cutting out ostentation and profligate expenditure, rationalising ministries and ministerial appointments and promoting services, humility as a canons of government. PROMISE BROKEN

This pledge has been dumped and by December 2009

2. Prepare and present to parliament , legislation on various tax and tariff measures designed to provide relief for Ghanaians

PROMISE BROKEN.

3. Ensure prompt and effective implementation of existing legislation such as the persons with disability PWD Act 2006 Act 715 and the whistle-blower’s Act 2006 Act 720

PROMISE BROKEN Disability policies exist on paper; none are being evidenced in practice. There can be no excuses for this. The Act provided for the establishment of the National Council on Persons with Disability to formulate policies and strategies for broad implementation. However it has taken three years for the government to establish the Council and almost five years for guidelines for the disbursement and management of the now 3% share of the District Assembly Common Fund assigned to persons with disabilities to be produced. A recent study by SEND Ghana found that out of the districts that are aware of the existence of the 3% DACF, only a third of people with disabilities in these district know how to access it.

4. Review and re-constitute the membership of commissions and boards , solely on the basis of expertise and competence , eschewing all partisan and familial consideration

PROMISE BROKEN. This has not been pursued on a strategic basis, still based on partisan consideration.

5. Protect the safety and security of Ghanaians by streamlining, harmonizing and resourcing the agencies of state with the responsibility for ensuring the security of life and the safety of property

PROMISE BROKEN. Officials are believed to be in bed with people indulged in the illicit drug trade by helping them to conceal the substances for safe transport overseas.

6. Take bold and comprehensive measures to deal with the appalling filth in our communities, and the related health problems of our people caused by inadequate , inappropriate, and ineffective waste management system and practices

PROMISE BROKEN. The NDC has not achieved this. Comparing the sewerage system of central Accra with the density of its population, coupled with its floating population, it is true that the available sewerage system is grossly insignificant and dysfunctional Waste management has become a chronic challenge for city authorities not so much because of lack of resources but largely due to lack of fore planning, inability to stick to policies and corruption.

The Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Samuel Ofosu Ampofo has bemoaned the level of filth engulfing Accra and blames it on attitudinal challenge.

According to him, the local government ministry has been working assiduously to deal with the nation’s canker but has proven futile due to the bad attitude of some Ghanaians who deliberately litter the environment.

The nation’s capital city which was initially known as one of cleanest cities in Africa cannot be given the same accolade due to filth swallowing it.

7. Review the national health insurance scheme to provide coverage for basic healthcare for all and review the unwieldy bureaucracy and palpable corruption of the scheme.

PROMISE BROKEN. NDC could not implement the one-time National Health Insurance Scheme

The General Secretary of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has affirmed the party’s commitment to implementing the one-time National Health Insurance Scheme in its second term if retained in power. GREAT JOKE

8. Vigorously promote and support quality health care for the people PROMISE BROKEN. Quality healthcare still a dream, scheme was touted as the silver bullet that would give Ghana’s rich and poor, elderly and young equal access to health services but the very influential in society are flown abroad for medical treatment whiles many patients are still going untreated because of administrative hiccups and overstretched resources. One recent day, Dorothy Mensah, 18, had been waiting for six hours outside the Korle Bu Poly Clinic, the biggest public clinic in Ghana. She said she registered with the health insurance scheme seven months ago, but was told she could not benefit from free medical services until she received the card.

9. Mobilize additional external resources to be able to expand and improve the quality of the School Feeding Programme to cover all primary schools countrywide

PROMISE BROKEN school feeding programme yet to be rolled nationwide

10. Review the GETFUND Act by decentralising the utilization of the Fund to the educational institutions themselves and with participation of students

PROMISE BROKEN. GETFUND Decentralization is still been born. This has not happened.

TO BE CONTINUED

GEORGE AMEGASHIE (LONDON)

EMAIL: georgeamegashie@yahoo.co.uk