We’ll protect your ballots - Mahama affirms
The flag bearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has assured Ghanaians that the party will protect the ballots of the electorate in the December general election.
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“I wish to assure Ghanaians that we are going to protect their ballots. Vote for the NDC, and your ballots will not get lost. We will police the poll and make sure that every single vote counts. Let’s all gear up for the election,” he said.
The former President was addressing thousands of NDC members and sympathisers, including Members of Parliament (MPs) and the party’s parliamentary candidates in the Greater Accra Region at the Nungua Town Park last Saturday.
His address climaxed the over six kilometres keep-fit walk in the morning rain from the Spintex Road to Nungua, dubbed “Fit and Ready Mahama Walk”.
Key personalities that joined the walk included the Head of the flag bearer's campaign, Professor Joshua Alabi; the MP for Tamale Central, Haruna Iddrisu; the MP for Klottey-Korle, Dr Zanetor Agyemang-Rawlings; and the MP for Krowor.
Volunteers
Mr Mahama urged party members and sympathisers with adequate qualification and experience to avail themselves and their services to be trained as polling agents who would ensure that the ballots at the polling stations were well protected.
“All of us who are capable must volunteer to train as party agents. If you are an accountant, you are a banker, whatever profession you have, if you are capable, please volunteer. We have to train you. However intelligent you are, if you are not trained in the electoral process, you will not be able to police a vote for us,” he stated.
The former President charged branch and constituency executive and sympathisers of the NDC not to sleep on December 7 evening until all the ballots had been counted and accounted for, adding that no constituency executive’s phone should be off on the election day.
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“It is the duty of the Chairman, the Vice-Chairman, the Secretary, the Organiser, Youth Organiser, Women's Organiser, and all the executive to stay awake for 72 hours. You must not sleep until the results are declared,” he said.
Campaign launch
The NDC flag bearer said the walk signified the beginning of the launch of the campaign for 2024, and called on the other 15 regions to organise same.
He announced that the party would officially launch its national campaign on Saturday in Tamale to commence a rigorous party campaign towards the December 7 elections.
“On July 27, we are launching the campaign and manifesto for the 2024 election in Tamale. Once the campaign is launched, there is no sitting down. The campaign is for all of us. It’s not for your constituency and regional campaign task forces. It’s for every one of you,” Mr Mahama said.
He urged NDC sympathisers to propagate NDC’s message of hope to Ghanaians at their spare time, and to visit homes, markets, lorry stations and anywhere they could find the electorate to advance the message of the party.
“At your spare time, go out and campaign. We’ll move from door to door, house to house, market to market, taxi rank to taxi rank, everywhere Ghanaians are. We’ll go there and send the NDC’s message. We'll send you leaflets to distribute to your neighbours. The NDC will solve the economic crisis and create job opportunities for our unemployed youth,” Mr Mahama stated.
Policies
The former President said the state of the current economy required that Ghanaians subscribed to proactive policies that would turn around the worsening economic conditions of the country.
He stressed that the NDC’s 24-hour economy policy had the game-changing dynamics to overcome the current unemployment rate, which stood at 14.7 per cent as against eight per cent in 2016.
He added that the NDC’s National Apprenticeship Programme would help to train young people with needed skills to create jobs and earn income for themselves.
Mr Mahama said the National Women’s Bank, as proposed to be established under the next NDC government, would offer loans to market women to start or expand their businesses.