Accra (Greater Accra) 06 February 2002 - Parliament on Tuesday began a heated debate on the state of the nation's address presented to the House by the President John Agyekum Kufuor last Thursday. The state of the nation address, also known as sessional address, was on the government's achievements during the previous year and the plans for this year.
Mr Kwasi Akomea Kyeremateng, NPP-Afigya Sekyere East moved that the House should commend the President for the address, which was "like Nehemia seeking to rebuild the desolate walls of Jerusalem."
Quoting extensively from the book of Nehemia in the Bible, Mr Kyeremateng urged the President not to loose guard and to fail, notwithstanding "the current predictable distractions".
He said the President last year set goals for his government and brought down inflation to 25 per cent, the free fall of the cedi was halted and the menace of serial killers has come to an end.
Mr Kyeremateng said the government was taking steps to stem the brain-drain of health and other professionals, increasing enrolment in all training institutions, the establishment of post-graduate medical college and introduction of service condition policy for medical practitioners.
He said the government was also instituting training programmes for nurses to specialise, the introduction of degree course in nursing and others, which would include remuneration and incentive packages to those doctors, who would like to establish their practice in deprive communities are also being considered.
Mr Kyeremateng's motion suffered a dent, when he referred to Accra-Yamoransa, Accra-Aflao and Accra-Kumasi roads and said the NPP government was going to undertake their construction and would not suspend any project in an area whose people might have not voted for the government, as was the case in the NDC regime.
He alluded to the suspension of some project in his constituency because the people did not vote for the NDC. This brought Mr Doe Adjaho, Minority Chief Whip, and Mr Emmanuel Zumakpe, NDC Nadowli South to their feet on different points of orders claiming that although those roads had remained on the drawing board for a long time the Accra-Aflao road would have started in 2001 had the NPP government not gone HIPC.
Amidst shouts of "yeah, yeah" from the Minority side with the Majority side countering, "it is not true, it is not true", Mr. Peter Ala Adjetey, the Speaker was forced to use his gavel to bring the House to order.
Mr Edward Salia, NDC-Jirapa said he was then the Minister of Roads and Transport and the suspension of those projects was due to lack of funds and was not based on any political motives by the previous government.
Mr Kenneth Dzirasah, Second Deputy Speaker, seeing that the House was becoming unruly advised that members should stay away clear from controversies to which the Speaker thank him for.
Mr Kyeremateng said "the President and his team within this one-year have worked tirelessly and deserve commendation" and that the President courageously spoke the bitter truth to give meaning to positive change.
Dr Kwabena Adjei, NDC-Biakoye took the House by storm when he said he was rising to second the motion with reluctance. The Speaker quickly brought him to track and told him that every member of the House was a free man who should be free to pursue an action freely and it was either for him to second the motion without reservation or not to second it at all.
This brought Mr Hackman Owusu-Agyemang, Minister of Foreign Affair, Papa Owusu-Ankomah, Majority Leader and Mr Alban Bagbin, Minority Leader to cut in with jokes about Dr Adjei's approach to debates when he was a Majority Leader in the previous Parliament.
Dr Adjei in his characteristics combatant mood asked, "by the way whose judgement or assessment does President Kufuor use as the basis for believing that unlike the past regimes, his administration, can be exonerated from human rights, can claim to be impeccable upholders of the rule of law and is perceived to be more politically tolerant of opposition or dissent.
"It is very dangerous for any government to revel in positive self-assessment and in the assessment of its performance". He said the President ought to have told Ghanaians about how all-inclusive his government really was to dispel the perception that his government "is the most exclusive in political and ethnic terms than any other in the political history of post-independence Ghana".
Dr Adjei asked whether it was true that the NPP regime within 12 months added six trillion to its external debt of some 41 trillion, and if so, why should an apparently debt-averse government take about 800 million dollars loan from external sources in one year.
He said the address deserved to be described as empty, hollow, lacking in substance and uninspiring.
GRi../
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