A flagbearer aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, has boldly stated that he will lead the NPP to break the ‘8’ and go ahead to make Ghana a prosperous country.
He has, therefore, asked delegates of the NPP to vote for him to become the flagbearer of the NPP. The former Food and Agriculture Minister told hundreds of party faithful that his enviable track record as an Agricultural Economist for almost two decades at the United Nations and also as the Minister of Food and Agriculture of Ghana, bear testimony to his capabilities.
Dr. Afriyie Akoto made this observation on Monday, May 29, 2023 when a group of farmers and friends presented to him nomination forms of the party’s presidential primary they had picked for him from the NPP Headquarters, as a sign of support for his presidential ambition.
Commenting further, he said for six years that he headed the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, one of the most sensitive portfolios in the country, he laid a very good foundation for the country to thrive on for many years to come.
For instance, the advancement of the Tree Crop Development Authority (TCDA), a program he single-handedly initiated, targeting six tree crops namely; oil palm, shea, cashew, Mango, Coconut and rubber, has the potential of generating US$12 billion annually for the country.
That notwithstanding, the government’s flagship program, Planting for Food and Jobs, which he introduced and spearheaded brought food security to the country.
These, together with many other programs he initiated, which yielded massive results for the country make him the ideal candidate for the topmost position of the Republic of Ghana.
He took time to highlight his ambitious programs for the country, using Agriculture as the base to drive the other sectors of the economy.
The former Member of Parliament (MP) for Kwadaso noted that a vote for him as flagbearer of the NPP and subsequently as President of the Republic of Ghana will see him prioritise the agricultural sector with public funds to generate more revenue to develop the country.
“I used to work with the UN system for 18 years and I have worked around with all kinds of governments. I haven’t seen any government which has been able to develop its economy by borrowing both locally and externally. It is always the generation of domestic production and the alternative we have is agriculture production for export and domestic food security.
“So, it is the right thing to do and it is something that I am going to preach and preach and preach to everybody that if I become the President of Ghana, this country will use most of its public resources to generate the capacity that agriculture has so that we can get more foreign exchange and local currency to finance the development of other sectors of the economy”, he stated.
He then urged all the party delegates to trust him by campaigning and voting massively for him to emerge as the flagbearer of the NPP and subsequently as President of the Republic of Ghana.
“I will not let you down. I will go all out and clinch victory for ourselves and NPP and Ghana will become a better place for us”, he posited.
By Stephen Odoi-Larbi
