<<Print>>

Hassan Ayariga, founder, and leader of the All People’s Congress (APC) says he wants to know how much money went into the celebration of last year’s independence day celebration, Ghana at 60.

In a statement he released to mark our 61st Independence anniversary as a country, he called on the government to be more serious about the fight against corruption.

“The elaborate celebration of our independence is meaningless unless we can show that we are dedicated to wiping corruption and investing public funds in the country’s development.”, he wrote.

“Today as we celebrate Ghana @61, we are yet to tell how much was spent on Ghana@60! What have we achieved during the Ghana @60 plan?”

Comparisons

He proceeded to compare Ghana to some other countries:

“Since 1992 we have travailed to return to those fledgling days of an immediate post-independence era. We cannot compare to Malaysia who learned palm production from us. Today we need to find out what is the state of our industries. The Twifo Oil Palm Plantation (TOPP) cannot provide palm oil for the whole country. Neither is the Ghana Oil Palm Development Company (GOPDC) able to expand its operations effectively.

“Our railways have deteriorated while we struggle to develop new lines. Nowadays there is no rail line linking Accra through Koforidua to Kumasi. Just imagine the impact of such a rail line on road accidents on the Accra Kumasi stretch alone. It will massively reduce because most cargoes will use trains which are safer. Even in our capital, we can only boast of Accra-Nsawam and recently Accra-Tema lines”. He wrote.

On sanitation, he picked Rwanda as the country of comparison:

“Today Rwanda which went through the most heinous of civil wars has transformed fast into a beacon of hope. Kigali is the cleanest City now in Africa while Accra represents filth. We all know the impact on our health. And talking of health we are proud to build ultra-modern hospitals and abandon them. Sound investment”, he concluded.