Former Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Baba Jamal has said that the ruling New Patriotic Party made fun of the National Democratic Congress during its consultation with Ghanaians. However, little did they know that the woes of Ghanaians will be captured in the manifesto with solutions to these problems.
Speaking to Happy FM’s Kwame Afrifa Mensah on the Epa Hoa Daben show, he said: “When we were going round to ask for the people’s ideas, the NPP mocked us that we were out of ideas. However, as it is said, one person cannot have all the knowledge. We consulted a lot of people and everyone who forms part of the country. We used the bottom-up approach. It is the people’s manifesto.
This is why you will notice that the little things that have been a problem over the years, has been captured in the manifesto”.
Backing his point with an example, he commented on the issue of the regularization of the Okada business and how Ghana can benefit should Okada business be legalized.
“An example is the Okada promise. According to the leadership of the okada business, there are about 800,000 people in the business. Let’s even half the number and we have 400,000. Today if we regularize and then we ask everyone to register their Okada business and pay an amount to the government , straight away, imagine the money that the country will make. People don’t respect the Okada business”, he said.
On September 7th 2020, the NDC launched its manifesto dubbed ‘The People’s Manifesto’, touting it as a manifesto that involved Ghanaians when it was compiled.
Among the many promises in the manifesto is the Okada legalization promise where Okada businesses will have the legal right to operate.
By: Alberta Dorcas N D Armah
