We Can Get Ghana Working

As we celebrate Osagyefour Dr Kwame Nkrumah's birthday, we must acknowledge that this dream has not been completed. Today our society is characterised by corruption, and the benefit of some at the expense of many. Empowerment programmes aimed at economic inclusive have only resulted in the enrichment of those who are politically connected, while leaving the vast majority of poor Ghanaians without the opportunity to pursue a life they value. While a bloated cabinet costs us almost quarter of a billion Ghana Cedi a year, all schools in Ghana do not have basic sanitation. Children are expected to learn in the most deplorable conditions, denying them their basic right to a good quality education. Our health care system is broken down, road network are in deplorable conditions, dumsorisation killing businesses and compounding unemployment rate which is currently 49.8%. Dr Nkrumah understood that building a strong economy is a basic requirement for building a prosperous Ghana. He understood that our people need freedom they can use. Unemployment and wealth inequality continue to divide us as a nation, and threaten to prevent us from fulfilling Nkrumah's dream. An equitable, prosperous society can only be made possible by economic growth that creates millions of jobs and opportunities for Ghanaians that are left out. But instead we face an economic crisis that sees 2 in 4 Ghanaians left without work. These people are not only being denied the chance to earn a living, but are being denied the chance to pursue their dreams and a life they value. No one has been more affected by this crisis than the youth � 2 in every 3 of those who are unemployed are young people. And 70% of those young people are without needed skills. Economic growth over the past 5 years has been, far below the level required to bring about meaningful change to the economic structure of our society. This is due to inconsistent policies, poor economic infrastructure, and rent seeking behaviour on the part of those who are connected to the elite. Independent People Party has Values Charter, underpinned by our belief in Freedom, Fairness and Opportunity. These values guide our vision for Ghana, the foundation of which is the belief that freedom without the opportunity to pursue a life one values is not freedom at all. It is only when each and every Ghanaian is empowered to pursue their dreams and realise their full potential that we will truly be able to �bridge the chasms that divide us.� In order to build a truly inclusive society, we must ensure that a child born in Upper East or Volta region is not faced with greater challenges to success than a child born in Greater Accra. This is the vision that the IPP has for Ghana. It is a vision for a country where a competent state, free from corruption, will empower all Ghanaians with the opportunities to live a life they value. And it is fundamentally a vision for a society where reward is aligned to effort; where all Ghanaians who work hard and play by the rules will be able to achieve their goals. We in IPP can get Ghana working. We can stop the rot of the economy that have occurred under both NPP and NDC and break the trend of rising unemployment. We can get our youth working by equipping them with the skills needed to find a job through an effective education system. This requires competent teachers and school managers. And we can incentivise their employment through a real youth wage subsidy. We can get our energy sector working by opening the market to private power producers and distributors instead of leaving everything to non performing ECG and VRA. Ghana has a wealth of potential waiting to be unlocked, but it is being held back by a corrupt NPP and NDC collaborated government that favours the enrichment of a select few over the empowerment of millions of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs that can create job opportunities. We can get Ghanaians working for themselves by cutting the red tape that holds back the owners of small and micro enterprises from becoming an engine of economic growth and job creation. By empowering small and micro enterprises we can make real gains toward halving unemployment. On the occasion of his inauguration, Osagyefour Dr Kwame Nkrumah stated that �at long last the battle is ended, and we have achieved our political independence� Our challenge is now to give power to this political independence by achieving our social and economic independence. Ghanaians share a desire for a brighter future. It is this desire that motivates the millions of parents who travel hours to work to give their children opportunities that they were denied. And it is this desire that motivates the millions of children who walk tens of kilometres to school to get an education that will empower them to find a job and support their own families one day. I believe in the spirit of the Ghanaian people. I believe that Nkrumah�s dream of a prosperous nation is alive and well, and I believe that Ghanaians are willing to work to see that it is achieved. More than anything, Dr Nkrumah believed in democracy. In order to achieve his dream we must honour that basic principle and elect a government that cares about the people more than it cares about itself. We must elect a government that can restore the supremacy of our Constitution and realize the potential of our economy. Kwame Nkrumah was a member of the left, but lives on in members on the right. Happy birthday Dr Kwame Nkrumah Happy African's day. Kofi Akpaloo Presidential Candidate 2016 Independent People Party