The Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, has rejected claims that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) failed to address Accra’s perennial flooding while in government.
Speaking in an interview on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Wednesday, July 1, he argued that the previous administration did not turn a blind eye to the flooding challenge, insisting the party laid the foundation for a long-term solution through the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development (GARID) programme.
“We need to give credit where credit is due. Looking at the facts before us, it is obvious that the NPP did not keep a blind eye to the flood situation.
“The NPP initiated the GARID programme—the Greater Accra Resilient and Integrated Development programme. The NPP secured funding for its implementation, and implementation continued until the party left office,” he stated.
According to him, the programme has since stalled following the change in government, a development he believes has slowed efforts to address the flood menace.
“It would not be fair for people to say that the NPP did nothing while it was in office and that the NDC is also doing nothing, so both parties should be blamed,” he added.
Mr. Awuah stressed that recognising governments for initiatives they undertake is essential to promoting accountability and encouraging continuity in governance.
“If we continue to ignore the good that has been done, then good will not be recognised and bad will always triumph. We must tell people when they have done well, commend them for it, and then continue to build as a country,” he said.
He further cautioned that what he described as the tendency by some sections of the media and political commentators to “equalise” the performance of successive governments, regardless of their achievements, could undermine national development.
“Otherwise, because there will always be equalising by the media and by some political watchers, people easily get away with murder. That is going to result in the retardation of our progress,” he added.
Source: myjoyonline.com
