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| President Yaw Osafo-Maafo? |
1/5/2007 |
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A Foremer Minister of Finance and Economic Planning and Member of Parliament (MP) for Akyem Oda, Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, has declared his intention to contest the flag bearer position of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the 2008 elections.
“I will stand ready to serve Mother Ghana in the challenging and exciting years ahead as the leader of the NPP,” he assured Ghanaians.
In a statement to the media issued in Accra, Mr Osafo-Maafo said his plan of action would be unveiled very soon, adding that he would definitely be a candidate.
“I want to assure all my supporters, friends, sympathisers and the nation at large that I have been quiet but very far from idle.
My vision for my party and for the nation and my plan of action will be unveiled very soon. I will definitely be a candidate,” he said.
According to Mr Osafo-Maafo, he decided to issue the statement after following, “with keen interest, the desire of my supporters, well-wishers and sympathisers to hear from me on my political future and whether I will seek the flagbearership of our party to continue my service to the nation”.
He said he relied on his faith to guide him through the good and bad times, “which I believe you all do in your daily lives.
As a people, we ought to see every day as a new beginning, a new lease of hope, a new opportunity to use our God-given talents to make our communities, our nation and our beloved world a better place”.
He added that since ideals could either unite or disintegrate the nation into a state of factional and partisan discord, “I believe that the most important good we can do for the nation, as we approach the 50th independence anniversary, will be to forge ahead in unity as one, reflecting on the common national interests which must be made to supersede partisan and parochial interests”.
Mr Osafo-Maafo urged Ghanaians to spend their efforts and energies on forging new national alliances for political stability and economic emancipation.
“We in the NPP should bear in mind that as the party in power, the celebration of Ghana’s 50th independence anniversary must be made to foster unity and harmony.
Indeed, the occasion should be used to demonstrate the unity the country showed after the Black Stars qualified for the 2006 World Cup and the marvellous performance they put out there,” he added.
“However divergent our approaches, strategies and methods for attaining our national ideals and goals may be, this diversity should not be seen as a weakness but as a source of strength,” he said.
The former minister urged Ghanaians to use the New Year to renew their determination and hope in their commitment to rededicate themselves as they stood united as a nation to confront the common enemies of poverty, diseases and ignorance, adding, “Let’s make our individual contributions to lift the living standards for our citizens.”
“We must learn from the past and have a clear vision for the future. Let us, therefore, usher in the New Year with the determination to live and work together as one people.
Whatever our political or religious conviction, whatever the part of Ghana we come from, we can and must move forward with one objective, that is, to make this a nation of peaceful, prosperous and happy people,” he added.
Mr Osafo-Maafo urged Ghanaians to see 2007 as the year of pride in the Ghanaian identity.
Source:
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