ghananlpcommunity/ghana-gov-speeches-sentences huggingface dataset:
In keeping with this advice, and to lead by example, I have temporarily suspended my SpeakOut tour across the country while we review procedures and put in place measures to minimize any risk of transmission during this period.
We will keep the regions updated on developments.
The virus outbreak is a national issue and we really are all in this together.
My party and I will play our role in supporting national efforts to mitigate the threat and to support our people through this crisis.
But let’s face the facts.
Our public healthcare service is already under strain and the coming weeks and months are going to be challenging.
I call on the government to make every necessary investment now to support their efforts.
We need to ensure a supply of medical equipment such as ventilators for treatment of the vulnerable and personal protective equipment for our health care professionals.
We need a plan for the testing of the many thousands of people who will be turning to the healthcare system for help.
I call on the government to publish a comprehensive plan on how it intends to deal with this emergency around the country.
Furthermore, I give my word to the people of Ghana that as the Minority and voice of the voiceless, we will hold the government to account on these issues.
We will be supportive of the measures and actions being taken by government, while remaining vigilant in ensuring that the public is adequately protected.
This is not a time for words.
It is a time for action.
What the government did not address is the wide-reaching economic impact of the pandemic.
We have seen governments around the world make bold moves to protect their economies and we should expect the Government of Ghana to respond rapidly to this challenge.
I call on the government to publish its plans to protect the economy including the possibility of a statement to Parliament on the expected impact on our economy of the disruptions of the COVID-19 on global supply chains and international travel.
A comprehensive budget review to Parliament may be necessary subsequently.
The virus is not only an Accra or Tema problem.
As we have noticed, one of the cases was found in Obuasi.
Government must therefore immediately ensure the provision of Isolation Centres in all regions of the country.
An identified case, kilometres from Accra, must not be transported to Accra for isolation and/ or treatment.
The availability of the regional isolation centres, together with adequate testing kits, and more than enough PPEs will be an encouragement to the medical personnel currently sacrificing a lot to support the ongoing efforts.
We must also provide adequate assurance to our frontline health workers of their protection.
An insurance package for health workers who may become severely infected in the line of duty, will be a good start.
During the Ebola crisis, I had experience in working with our partners in ECOWAS and the UN in addressing the Ebola threat.
ECOWAS must now put in place common enforceable protocols to deal with the coronavirus and the related issues.
ECOWAS health and other ministers and their advisors must hold a teleconference, as a matter of urgency, to review the sub-regional actions.
I recommend to the government the lessons of our brothers in Libera and Sierra Leone during the Ebola epidemic a few years ago.
Misinformation and mistrust are our enemies in this fight.
A pandemic of fear can only be prevented if the relevant authorities prove themselves to be transparent and trustworthy by telling the truth and by telling it often.
Clear communication with the public is critical, but the Ministry of Health must also take steps to safeguard the public against false information and fake cures on social media and elsewhere.
I have instructed my communications team and my public health advisors to support efforts by the Ghana Health Service and the Ministry of Health.
I have asked all former appointees of my administration who assisted in our readiness efforts during the Ebola epidemic to aid the government in any way they can, if requested to do so.
The virus is an enemy to all Ghanaians and the call to duty in the fight against it rises above partisanship and politics.
To our frontline healthcare workers, a grateful nation salutes your efforts, your dedication and your resolve.
Your country is behind you and we are relying on your courage and competence to see us through this difficult time.
We ask for God’s protection for you in this hour of crisis, and we will continue to pray for your success in our mosques, in our churches and in our homes.
Now is the time for all of us to take care of ourselves and of each other.
And let us remember that the measure of our nation’s greatness is in moments of crisis such as this is how we rise to challenge.
I call on each of us to take care of ourselves and of each other.
And remember that the measure of our nation’s greatness in a moment of crisis such as this is how the least among us will ultimately fare.
Please remember the Ghana Health Service guidelines and the emergency numbers always.
You must make contact immediately you observe anything disturbing or any symptoms.
I commit you all to the goodness and grace of God and remain hopeful that we will be successful in containing and eliminating this virus from our shores.
Thank you, and may God bless us all.
REMARKS BY NDC FLAGBEARER HE JOHN DRAMANI MAHAMA COMMEMORATIVE DURBAR: AYAWASO WEST WUOGON VIOLENCE Friday, January 31, 2020.
Good morning and thank you, my brothers and sisters, for joining us here at La Bawaleshie.
Normally, a gathering within the month of January of the New Year would have been expected to be festive.
Unfortunately, our gathering today, which has brought together not only members and friends of the NDC but Ghanaians of all walks of life, is anything but celebratory.
It is a memorial of pain, anguish, and of betrayal of trust.
A year ago today, just close to this very ground we are standing on today, innocent Ghanaians waiting to cast their ballots were violently attacked and some injured, ironically, in the course of an exercise that was expected to consolidate our growth and maturity as a democracy.
On that fateful day, a day that has tragically and disgracefully gone down in our history as a “Black Thursday,” our nation, like something out of a horror movie, witnessed an assault on citizens- a severe assault, the likes of which has never occurred before except during the era of brutal military regimes.
We had all thought that those terrifying days when men in uniform acting with impunity, visited unimaginable atrocity against innocent citizens was over until party thugs dressed in security outfits and their collaborators in police uniform brought back that nightmarish experience during the 31st of January 2019 by-election of Ayawaso West-Wuogon.
My dear friends, ladies and gentlemen, while we are all witnesses to that sordid history, we must remember that it is those who have been physically maimed and others who have been mentally scarred from the experience, with their families and loved ones, who bear and re-live the memory and the pain each day.
The cowardly act of barbarism perpetrated by government elements against citizens whose only interest was to choose a Member of Parliament for themselves could have been worse.
Thankfully, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) as it had always done throughout our democratic journey since 1992, on that day, once again showed leadership and put the peace and security of the country first by withdrawing from that election.
Indeed, later events would prove that the dastardly act was an orchestrated plan that was intended to be replicated at other voting centres to intimidate and suppress our support base, and we have been exonerated.
One year after that disgraceful chapter in our nation’s life, there are questions that remain unanswered.
Why must any responsible government compromise the security of the nation by infiltrating its security set-up with militia members forming the core of a specialised SWAT unit that the IGP, under whose command they should fall, confessed he knew nothing about?
If the current constitution of our National Security remains the same, in a case where we need protection, do we seek refuge in the police who were unaware of rogue elements using their vehicle, and who stood passively by as those elements rained terror on innocent civilians?
Why is President Akufo-Addo who should be defending the law make mockery of it, thereby setting a dangerous precedent by accepting that assault is permitted if one believes one was provoked?
Why did President Akufo-Addo pretend he cared about vigilantism and wanted to tackle it and yet refused to abide by key recommendations of the Emile Short Committee, which among others included the prosecution of identified offenders and the disbanding of the illegal, parallel SWAT unit?
My brothers and sisters, anyone who professes to love Ghana, the only country we have, should be concerned about the President’s actions which has almost certainly emboldened criminal elements within his government and party to attempt more attacks against political opponents, especially with elections just about 10 months away.
Let me make this very clear: we have reached a critical point and Ghana’s future as a peaceful, united country is at stake.
On 7th December, 2020, as they have promised us a repeat of the bloody gun violence, this time on a national scale, there will be innocent school children around and that is why we cannot keep quiet.
There will be pregnant women and the aged present and that is why we must not remain silent.
There will be Christians, Muslims, traditionalists and people of all faith right there and that is why we must stop them now.
There will be media personnel and others when they start their promised attacks and that is why we must resist the rule of oppressors.
No Ghanaian can sit on the fence claiming neutrality; every single individual across our nation must stand up and choose the side of Ghana.
We call on the National Peace Council not to allow themselves to be railroaded into serving as a cosmetic veneer to make the government look as though it is tackling the matter of vigilantism.
Ghanaians are looking up to them for impartial, decisive direction and they cannot disappoint them.
They must be quick to publicly condemn the war drums that government functionaries are sounding, with the apparent approval of the government, ahead of the 2020 elections.
The Peace Council has a sacred duty to advocate that the criminal elements that have infiltrated the National Security set-up are removed so that confidence can be restored in our security and Ghanaians can go to the polls to elect the next President in an atmosphere that promotes free, fair and transparent elections.
In conclusion, I wish to state clearly that the assault suffered by citizens, at the hands of their own government, a government that was constitutionally bound to protect them, will not just pass in vain.
We will do everything in our power to ensure that they receive justice, even if not immediately, very soon.
Thank you, and May God Bless us all.
PRESS CONFERENCE BY THE NEW PATRIOTIC PARTY (NPP), READ BY PETER MAC MANU, NATIONAL CAMPAIGN CHAIRMAN DATE: 14TH MAY, 2020.
We have invited you here this afternoon to respond to aspects of the National Democratic Congress’s (NDC) press conference that was held this afternoon.
The main thrust of their argument is that the Electoral Commission (EC) and the National Identification Authority (NIA) are in a conspiracy to rig the 2020 elections in favour of the NPP.
It is within the rights and competence of both the EC and the NIA to respond to the main thrust of the NDC’s accusation.
But it is important we make it clear that the NPP is and cannot be part of any conspiracy whatsoever to rig the 2020 elections.
The NDC has sat together to plan and have finally come out with the details of their fake conspiracy theory against the NPP.
A fake conspiracy does not become a credible conspiracy just because an opposition that is afraid of losing a free and fair contest says so.
We want the people of Ghana to ask the NDC this simple but important question: so what is it about the 2012 voters register that the NDC is so determined to protect it from being replaced?
What is in that 2012 register that the NDC is threatening civil war if it is changed for a better one?
Why is the NDC placing its entire electoral fortunes on that controversial register which was compiled under their term in office?
Please, remember that this is the first time ever that any opposition party in Ghana has complained and complained so loudly against the compilation of a new voters’ register.
Under President Rawlings, the EC compiled a new register and the NPP in opposition supported it.
Under President Kufuor, the EC compiled a new register and the NDC then under John Atta Mills did not complain.
In 2012, under President John Atta Mills, the EC set out to compile a new register and the NPP did not only welcome it, we were constructive in pushing for features to enhance its credibility.
It is that same register that the Supreme Court later ruled that it was wrong for the EC to accept the National Health Insurance Card as an ID source for registration in 2012.
We set out in opposition to campaign for that discredited register to be changed.
The NDC in government opposed our campaign.
It was not done.
But we did what any responsible political party must do; we organized ourselves and prosecuted our campaign and the people of Ghana gave us the highest numbers of Parliamentarians and the highest margin of nearly one million votes in the presidential election.
Our focus since then has been to justify the confidence that the Ghanaian people reposed in us by fixing the economy that the NDC rigged and with Akufo-Addo giving the people the caring and decisive leadership which John Mahama is not capable of delivering.
The NDC National Chairman said this afternoon that the NPP set out to rig the 2020 general elections immediately we took office in 2017.
Well, Ghanaians know better.
The focus of President Akufo-Addo and his Government upon assuming office was to fix the economy that President John Mahama and his NDC rigged in their 8 years in office.
It remains our focus, to manage the crisis caused by Covid-19 in a way that the Ghanaian economy and society will come out of this crisis stronger and more united.
The plan of the NDC is nothing more than to fabricate grounds for chaos, disunity and fear.
They are doing this because they do not have a good candidate and a good story to tell voters in December.
It is that record of a rigged leadership under John Dramani Mahama that the NDC must be afraid of bringing back to face the Ghanaian people for their votes and not any fake conspiracy to rig the elections against them.
NDC must be reminded that the NPP, as an opposition party, beat the NDC in 2020 ––and by the largest margin ever in Ghana’s history against an incumbent president in Ghana’s history.
It is not the fault of any Ghanaian that the NDC chose to bring back as their presidential candidate for 2020 the very man on whose hands the NDC suffered their biggest defeat in their history.
It is not the fault of NPP that the NDC chose to bring back as their 2020 presidential candidate the very same man who gave Ghana the worst economic growth performance since 1994.
It is not the fault of President Akufo-Addo that the NDC has very little confidence in their own chosen Candidate for 2020, John Mahama.
We do not need the EC to rig an election in our favour.
A government that has put some 1.3 million children to school, (who if NDC was in power would be on the streets) does not need an election to be rigged in its favour.
A government that has restored industry and is creating jobs for the people does not need an election to be rigged in its favour.
A government that has put 100,000 unemployed graduates to work does not need an election to be rigged in its favour.
A government that puts the interest of the ordinary Ghanaian first, whether it is in protecting the money of millions of depositors, or absolving the cost of electricity and water of 30 million Ghanaians, to ease the sufferings of the people when there is a crisis, such a government does not need an election to be rigged in its favour.
The President continues to show leadership and commitment to the welfare of ordinary Ghanaians and it is this which gives us confidence that the Ghanaian people will recognize his leadership and performance and allow the party that knows how to deliver to continue.
We intend to fight and win in December based on our performance.
Let me repeat, Ghanaians must find out why the NDC is so against the compilation of a new register which promises enhanced security features, such as facial recognition.
What is it about the 2012 register that the NDC holds sacred?
What is it about the 2012 register that the NDC claims if it is replaced, they will never win an election?
In what way did they tie their electoral fortunes to the maintenance of a discredited register?
They ought to tell us.
What is it about the 2012 register that the NDC claims they are prepared to foment trouble if it is replaced?
Ladies and gentlemen of the media, Ghana since the establishment of the 4th Republic has had registers compiled at various stages of our journey towards perfecting our democracy: 1992, 1996, 2004, 2012.
So basically, we have had new registers compiled every eight years since 1996.
And for each of those exercises the idea has been to introduce features that are better than the previous one with the view to secure the sanctity of the register.
So why is the NDC afraid of an improvement in the security and soundness of the register?
We have elections in December, and President Akufo-Addo has made it clear that elections must and will be held as scheduled as far as the Government is concerned.
The NPP is not afraid to face the electorate.
Assuming, for the sake of argument, that the coronavirus is still with us like now in seven months’ time - and that is a possibility - will the NDC be against the holding of the elections?
There are some over 1,000,000 odd young people who have attained the age of 18 since last year.
They have a right to be registered.
And so, the EC will register them.
How is this registration going to be done?
Or is the NDC suggesting that we disenfranchise all these people?
The EC has a mandate to conduct elections in December.
The NDC should be constructive in discussing how at least the over one million Ghanaians who will be old enough to register to vote this year will be done, even under this period of social distancing.
It is important that we support the EC in all the processes that will lead to delivering free, fair and credible elections.
Not only is the NDC against the compilation of a new voter’s register, they are similarly against the issuance of National Identity Cards.
The tried in 8 years to issue a national ID but were not competent enough to get it done.
The benefits of having a national ID are varied and far reaching.
In South Korea and Mauritius for example, where citizens and foreign residents are properly documented, National IDs have helped to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease.
For instance, in the course of its six-week lockdown in Mauritius, residents have been permitted to go out for basic necessities according to the alphabetical order of their surnames.
Currently there are no active cases in Mauritius.
Such an innovation would be difficult to implement in Ghana without proper citizen and resident identification.
Everyone knows who lives in their homes.
We can identify them.
Parents can identify their children and wards by name and by face.
Every entrepreneur knows who works in their company.
If it’s a big organization, they provide them with ID cards.
Even the NDC has ID cards for their members.
So why is the NDC so against a project that seeks to do for all our citizens and residents what the NDC has done for its members?
So why is the NDC against a national project that seeks to do what the NDC has done for itself?
We understand and appreciate that there are potential risks associated with bringing people together to register for the national ID.
The NPP would like to encourage the NIA to share with the public their coronavirus risk mitigation strategies.
Ladies and gentlemen of the media, we call on the NDC to face up to the realities of the time and convince the Ghanaian people why they must bring an inept, clueless and incompetent Mahama back to power after he run down the country in the manner that he did.
We didn’t elect their flagbearer for them.
They elected him.
If they find that he is an albatross around their necks, they should not be making excuses way ahead of the election in order to justify his loss in December which is inevitable.
We will end by saying that we support the compilation of a new register but will leave that decision for the EC to make.
However, with or without a new register, the New Patriotic Party is prepared to campaign and win the endorsement of the overwhelming majority of the Ghanaian people once again in the next polls, based purely on what we are delivering to protect and improve the lives of the people in every corner of the country.
May God bless our homeland Ghana and make her great and strong.
INAUGURAL ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT JOHN DRAMANI MAHAMA ON THE OCCASION OF HIS SWEARING-IN AS PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF GHANA Rt.
Speaker of Parliament, His Excellency the Vice President, Her Ladyship the Chief Justice, Your Excellencies our dear former Presidents, Your Excellencies Visiting Heads of State and Heads of Delegations, Hon.
Members of Parliament, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Nananom, Distinguished Guests, My Fellow Countrymen-and-women, Family and Friends.
It has been said that what is past is prologue, a mere introduction of all that is yet to come.
If this is the case, then Ghana is in store for a wealth of achievement.
Ghana’s past is filled with one example after the other of courage, sacrifice and perseverance.
Ghana’s past is defined by heroic men and women—pioneers, visionaries, patriots.
Indeed, we have inherited a powerful legacy, beneficiaries of a mighty history.
The names of our forefathers and foremothers are firmly etched in the world’s memory.
People like Nana Yaa Asantewaa, Naa Gbewa, Dr.
Kwame Nkrumah and Dr.
Danquah.
People like Efua Sutherland, Dr.
James Kwegyir Aggrey, Dr.
Esther Afua Ocloo and Dr.
Ephraim Koku Amu.
These are but a few of the names of people who were fearless enough to fulfil their dreams, or to fight for the liberation of their people, or to envision change and then manifest it.
We rightfully memorialize the names of the many, many individuals whose singular contributions have elevated the profile of this nation and enriched the lives of its citizens.
We respectfully extol their virtues and hold them in high esteem.
In fact, we hold them in such high esteem that we often overlook entirely the reality that these heroes, these men and women, were as human as you and I. The majority of individuals who have had the greatest impact on this country came from humble beginnings.
They were not so different from most Ghanaians, like those assembled here or those going about the events of their day in the homes, churches, mosques, and offices across the country.
They were ordinary people who lived their lives to the fullest, made use of their God-given talents, and took pride in their activities.
That was the simple call they answered, the call that placed them in extraordinary circumstances, events and experiences that led them to indelibly change the face and the very fabric of this nation.
Mention the name Tetteh Quarshie, for instance, and you will learn the story of an ordinary man, a blacksmith, the son of a farmer from Teshie.
In 1870, Tetteh Quarshie travelled to Fernando Po, an island that belongs to the nation of Equatorial Guinea and is now called Bioko.
At the end of that fateful trip, Tetteh Quarshie returned home with several cocoa seeds.
He planted those seeds on his property in Mampong-Akwapim to see if they would grow.
So well suited was this crop to the soil and climate that it grew abundantly.