Jumapo (E/R), Feb. 03, GNA-Joshua Attah-Mensah, Eastern Regional Deputy Propaganda Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Saturday won the primaries of the New Juaben North Constituency branch of the NDC to represent the party in the constituency during the 2008 parliamentary elections.

He polled 50 votes to defeat the former New Juaben Municipal Chief Executive, Mr. Emmanuel Adu-Boateng, who polled 36 and the parliamentary candidate of the party for the 2004 elections, Mr, Frank Mensah Frimpong-Boateng.

Speaking at the function, Mr Antwi Boasiako-Sekyere of the Office of Professor John Evans Atta-Mills Campaign team, called on people who were talking about the health of Prof. Atta Mills to stop and rather talk about issues of governance.

He said the attempt to shift the debate from issues to personal affairs is a sign of desperation by the opponents of the NDC and he called on members of the party to unite and fight on for the party to win Election 2008.

Mr. Boasiako-Sekyere explained that, despite the attempt to publicly demonstrate unity among the personalities who contested to become the flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), on the ground, the way that party organized the campaign had divided the party to the extent that it is no long united as it used to be and urged the members of NDC to take advantage of the situation to march forward to victory.

The Eastern Regional Chairman of NDC, Mr Julius Debrah called on the people of New Juaben North Constituency to

vote for NDC who are their natural allies because of its social

democratic programmes which favours the development of

people in rural and agrarian communities such as people in

the constituency. He explained that, full flair capitalist parties like NPP who

believes in property owning democracy did not pursue

political agenda that favour rural communities and at best

undertake one or two programmes that are in the interest of

the rural areas which they show of, while majority of their

programmes are anti-poor and agrarian communities. Mr. Debrah cited the failure of the NPP government to

protect the interest of tomato farmers in Northern Ghana

against the importation of similar products from neighbouring

countries, the inability to protect the local poultry industry

against importation of cheap and inferior quality products

and the government's inability to implement the rice project

started by NDC government aimed at making Ghana net

exporter of rice as some of anti-agrarian policies of the

government. He said, in Mali, there is a policy that hotels up to four

star hotels should use local fowls in preparing their meals and

so many homes rearing local fowls at their backyard in Mali

could easily sell them to the hotels and have some money for

the home, which he described as a better way of poverty

reduction. The Regional Organizer of the party, Mr Tawiah Boateng

called on drivers to vote for NDC so that when it comes back

to power, it would guarantee loans for them to acquire buses

and pay back under a "work and pay" policy to create

employment. He said instead of finding a better way of reducing

motor accidents and encouraging motorists to abide by the

road traffic regulations, the government of NPP found it

convenient to establish special courts to impose heavy finds

on drivers and throw them into jail while there are no special

courts to speedily deal with criminal and cocaine cases. Mr. Boateng said now it seemed drivers, who broke the

law were made to suffer more heavy penalties than some

cocaine dealers and criminals arrested by the law

enforcement agencies. 03 Feb. 2008