Accra, The Convention People’s Party (CPP) has called for a shift in political debates from partisanship to programmatic evaluations of the vision carved out for Ghana.
The Party opined that the best path to achieve that vision was not to blame the CPP and President Dr Kwame Nkrumah for the collapse of the Ghanaian economy, or a lack of vision, otherwise it would be a clear misunderstanding of realities in the Country.
A statement signed by Madam Nana Akosua Frimpomaa Sarpong Kumankuma, Chairperson and Leader of CPP and copied the Ghana News Agency, said petty debates about what Nkrumah did or did not do, without acknowledging the failures of the current economic system to meet the needs of Ghana was the last needed thing.
“What is of merit, however, is a discussion about the fundamental guiding principles of this country. Our development has been staggered because our economic and social policies are not cohesive,” it said.
The statement said the commanding heights of Ghana’s economy were now in the hands of foreigners whilst indigenous Ghanaians did menial jobs.
It said the citizenry were not informed enough about the implications of policies proposed by parties beyond campaign talking points and it was time to bring Ghanaians back to the table.
“CPP is proposing a series of public debates, fueled only by facts and evidence, to discuss our trajectory and the policies and decisions that have real consequences in the lives of Ghanaians.”
The statement said since 1966 to date, successive governments had allowed the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other Western creditor nations to structure the context within which their client, Ghana, formulated her economic policy.
“The CPP would like to sound an alarm on the imminent collapse of the Ghanaian economy. Ever since the unfortunate coup d’etat of February 24, 1966, that overthrew the CPP government of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, successive governments have lost control of the levers of the economy to the extent that we are now a client nation to the World Bank IMF and other Western creditor nations,” the statement said.
It said with the state in control of the commanding heights of the economy, the CPP Government of Dr Kwame Nkrumah launched the celebrated 7-year development plan in 1963, which saw the establishment of almost all the legacy projects in Ghana today, from the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) to the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Ghana State Farms Corporation, Akosombo Dam, GIHOC Industries, Ghana State Housing Corporation, State Construction Corporation etc, all in 3yrs, before the coup.
“This led to the massive expansion of industry and jobs in Ghana that has never been replicated to this day. Ghanaians must understand that apart from the United States all the states in Europe and elsewhere have used the state enterprises system, as a first step towards building up their economies,” it said.
The statement said Ghanaians must juxtapose the performance of the CPP Government to that of the UP/NPP, and the (P) NDC approach, which abandoned, “indeed purposefully truncated the gains Ghana made under the CPP’s 7-year development plan and replaced it with the unbridled capitalism we see today.”
“The (P) NDC and UP/NPP have together, shut down and sold off most of the productive State-Owned Enterprises in the name of the private sector is the engine of growth,” the statement said.
“Clearly, trade liberalization and the unbridled private sector participation has shattered our local economy and decimated local industry and the entrepreneurial spirit of Ghanaians, leaving in its wake, certain endemic poverty that has robbed Ghanaians of their dignity. The CPP, by this press statement is calling for an honest assessment of the state of affairs and debate our path forward with Experts, Policy Makers and Politicians,” it said.
Source: Ghana News Agency
Add Comment