Manwe (U/W), April 13, GNA - Alhaji Abdul-Rahman Abubakari, Upper West Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has urged the people to retain the Party in power in the upcoming elections as a mark of gratitude to the government for development projects it has implemented in the region. "If the National Democratic Congress (NDC), with all your support, had shown this type of zeal and commitment to the development of the region when it was in power, poverty levels in the region would have by now declined by more than 70 percent," he held.

Alhaji Abubakari said this when he inaugurated youth and women's wings of the NPP at Manwe, which until recently, was a key stronghold of the NDC in the Wa East constituency. He mentioned newly constructed link roads, new school buildings, capitation grant that has increased enrolment figures in schools, relative stable prices of goods such as textiles, and efforts to provide them electricity as "clear testimonies" of the government's good work and a justification to retain it in the elections. He told the people of Manwe to compare social amenities that they now enjoyed with the era of the NDC administration to see whether the NPP-led government had not done great things for them.

Mr Zakaria Mohamed Chikay, a youth activist of the NPP said Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo had the right political clout and experience to succeed where past presidents had failed and that he was an obvious choice in the next elections. "Nana will win the election and it is for all of you to support him and be part of this victory," he said, amid spontaneous cheers from teeming supporters.

Madam Anatu Ibrahim, a leading member of the region's women's wing of the Party, said life under NPP was far better for women than under the NDC, citing prices of wax prints and women's wear. "There are better days ahead if we women give our votes to the NPP," she held. Mr Kuobunaa Adamu, a Party elder in the community, said although there was a proliferation of political parties in the area, the community would do its best to ensure massive victory for the NPP.