Mr John Dramani Mahama, National Democratic Congress Flagbearer, has expressed determination to bring the economy back on track if elected in the December polls. 

Speaking at Kasseh in Ada on day one of his Greater Accra Regional Campaign, he maintained that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration had taken the country “backward” in the last eight years. 

“In the last eight years, this administration [NPP] has sent our nation 10 years back. We cannot pay our debts, we cannot buy simple commodities that we produce ourselves because they are too expensive. 

“We are begging the world to forgive us our debts, we’ve given haircut to bondholders; our Cedi is depreciating every day,” he stated. 

The former President described Election 2024 as a choice between “moving forward and going backwards,” and urged the electorate to vote for the NDC to return and work “in the interest of the people”. 

“The extent to which this government [NPP] has destroyed this country; not only our economy, all the state owned enterprises; it is going to take a lot of hard work to bring them back to what they were before…But NDC has the men and women who can do it; and we are going to do it to make this nation a better place for all our people. 

“…We are the nation builder and we are going to come to continue the work we were doing,” he added. 

Mr Mahama reiterated plans and policies such as the NDC’s proposed Women’s Bank and the National Apprenticeship Programme, meant to “reset” the economy. 

At Bonikope, Sege, he thanked the people for the continuous support, and urged voters not to be swayed by financial inducements and “sweet promises” by the ruling party ahead of the General Election. 

The Flagbearer highlighted tourism and other economic potentials in Ada and beyond, indicating that the area “will have a fair share of the National Cake,” under his administration. 

The Deputy Minority Leader in Parliament, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, is urging the electorate to vote the National Democratic Congress (NDC) into power, come December 7, to actualise the promises in its Manifesto.

He said the NDC painstakingly crafted a people-centered manifesto to alleviate the hardships and sufferings of Ghanaians.

A statement issued and signed by Mr Buah, copied to the Ghana News Agency at Aiyinasi in the Western Region, said: “Over the weekend, we proudly unveiled our game-changing national manifesto, ‘Resetting Ghana’ – a visionary blueprint poised to transform our nation’s trajectory.”

“This comprehensive document outlines a clear roadmap of innovative policies, initiatives, and programmes that our leader, H.E. John Mahama, and the NDC are committed to implementing to revitalise Ghana’s growth.”

It said with a focus on holistic development, the manifesto addresses critical sectors, including the economy, energy, education, healthcare, and ensuring significant improvements in every facet of national life.

“At this critical juncture in our nation’s history, we need a seasoned and competent leader like former President John Mahama to navigate us out of the current woes and propel Ghana towards prosperity.”

The statement said the NDC was poised to resetting Ghana with jobs, accountability and prosperity and called on the citizenry to rise and rally behind the NDC to build Ghana together.

Mr. Justine Kodua Frimpong, General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has assured the National Peace Council (NPC) that the party will do nothing to undermine the country’s peace and stability.

According to him, the NPP has worked for years to ensure the country’s peace and stability and will not do anything to threaten it.

“The NPP stands for peace and admires the political stability that we have in this country and will never at any point in time anything to defeat and destroy the peace and stability that we are enjoying as a country.”

Mr. Frimpong made the remarks when a delegation from the NPC led by Maulvi Mohammed Bin Salin, an NPC board member, met with the party’s leadership at its headquarters in Accra.  

He further stressed that the NPP, as a political tradition, has been at the forefront of promoting and canvassing for multi-party democracy because it believed in the rule of law.

Mr. Frimpong cited the NPP’s proposal for picture ID cards, a biometric system, transparent ballot boxes, and other aspects of the country’s electoral process that Ghanaians now enjoyed. 

He said that the NPP, as a political party, was proud of the country’s achievements as a multi-party democracy over the last three decades and that the party had served both in government and opposition.

Mr. Frimpong also stated that the NPP had a strong candidate and a good message on which Ghanaians would vote, and that even if the party lost the polls, it would accept the results, claiming that they would have another four years to persuade Ghanaians to vote for them.

“But Mr. Chairman, let nobody threaten the NPP…. Nobody can threaten the NPP that if it does not go their way this country will be ungovernable or there may be mayhem, something that we will never accept.

“That signal must be sent to them clearly, that we are going to the elections and Ghanaians will decide. But when Ghanaians decide it is the NPP, anyone will accept the results and if does not go favour too we will accept the results” he said.

Maulvi Bin Salin emphasised that the NPC’s goal was to have open discussions with the NPP, listen to their problems, and work out solutions.

He also expressed concern about political operatives playing war drums on radio stations, which he insisted elevated the country’s temperature ahead of the 2024 general elections.

He later presented a manual by the NPC on the code of conduct for political parties to Mr. Frimpong.

The Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has reiterated his commitment to ensuring free, fair and violent-free elections, noting that “not a single drop of Ghanaian blood should be sacrificed for power”. 

He said Ghana’s existence should transcend individual’s political ambitions.  

Speaking to journalists during a media engagement in Accra on Sunday, Dr Bawumia, cautioned against actions that could lead to violence and destruction of property. 

He expressed concern about the increasing use of incendiary language by some political activists and individuals on political platforms and media space. 

The NPP Flagbearer said the elections should be a contest of ideas and solution proposals to the country’s socio-economic challenges, and thus emphasised the NPP’s determination to pitch its ideas and bring solutions to the teething challenges facing the citizens if given the nod in the December 7 Election. 

“We will run a campaign of ideas. Our goal is that at the end of the contest, will be secure in the knowledge that there is work to do.” 

Dr Bawumia re-affirmed his commitment to run a campaign focused on ideas and ensure that the NPP conducted itself in a manner befitting a democratic group. 

He urged those threatening “brimstone and fire” to reconsider their actions and thus reminded them that such actions were un-Ghanaian. 

More than 200 journalists and media practitioners from the 16 regions took part in the media engagement and asked questions that bothered on some promises outlined in the NPP 2024 Election Manifesto and actions undertaken by the ruling government since it assumed power in 2017 to date. 

Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has urged voters to choose a candidate that will focus on upgrading the country and build on existing achievements.

Speaking to journalists in Accra on Sunday, the Vice President said: “Ghana needs an upgrade and not a reset “and pledged to work towards the complete transformation of the economy.

While admitting that the economy suffered a downturn in 2020 and 2022, Dr Bawuima said the Government had put measures in place to support the rebound of the economy.

He commended the media for supporting his campaign thus far and pledged topass and fully implement the Broadcasting Bill if not passed by Parliament in the last sitting of the House.

Dr Bawumia said he was committed to a free, fair and transparent elections, saying: “The quest for political power should not be an end to itself.”

“We will run a campaign of ideas. Our goal is that at the end of the contest, we will be secure in the knowledge that there is work to do,” he said.

The Electoral Commission (EC) says it is working with the police to bring the matter of an unauthorised person in possession of the Commission’s Biometric Verification Device (BVD) to rest.

In a statement signed by Mr Samuel Tettey, Deputy Chairman, Operations, the Commission said: “A stolen BVD cannot jeopardise the integrity of the 2024 Elections,” and stated its resolve to address the concern.

The EC said the stolen BVD was nothing more than an off-the-shelf device and could not be used to compromise an election without the necessary technical and security protocols.

It said five laptops, which formed part of Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) Kits were stolen from its stores in April 2024.

The Commission said five BVDs were also vandalised.

It said two BVDs were stolen from the Tarkwa Nsuaem District and North Tongu District respectively during the December 2023 District Level Elections (DLES).

The Commission said it undertook deliberate process of “preparing” a biometric verification device for any election ensuring that only devices prepared for a particular election could be used for that election.

“This process is robust and is not vulnerable to manipulation. The possession of a BVD that has not gone through this rigorous process that is yet to happen for the 2024 election does not affect the integrity of the election,” it said.

The Commission urged the public to note that the voter verification application had been designed such that it would only work with data that had been prepared, audited, encrypted, and signed by a Secure Process.

It said access to that process had been highly restricted and without access to the Secure Process, voter data could not be generated to work with the BVD.

“The Data that is loaded onto the BVDs are set to be activated for a particular Election Day. A stolen BVD, therefore, cannot work in the December 2024 Elections,” the Commission stressed.

It said the BVD, as part of its start-up process, would check for the integrity of the data that had been loaded onto it and if the voter data on it had been altered in any way, the start- up process would be halted and the BVD would not work.

The Commission added that the activation of the BVDs would involve the use of activation codes that could only be downloaded from the EC’s Secure System and that system had been restricted to election officials with the right access credentials.

“A BVD without its activation code cannot be used for the verification of voters. The data that is loaded onto the BVD must conform with the details of Voters on the voters register for each polling station,” it explained.

It said since the voters register for polling stations for the 2024 General Election would be different from previous elections, any data on a BVD that was activated for a previous election would not conform with the voters register at the particular polling station on December 7, 2024.