Heavy dependence on foreign aid bane of development — Prof. Delle

The National Chairman of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), Professor Edmund Nminyem Delle, has observed that the heavy dependence on foreign aid and support was the bane of development of the local economy.

He has also said politics of insults, victimisation, character assassination and corruption on the part of political parties and politicians are tendencies that retard the development of the country.

“Politics ought to be a tool that builds bridges and mends cracks in society. The current situation whereby political parties have what they call ‘world banks’ is a monster that can ruin our country,” he said.

1966 coup

Prof. Derry, who spoke to the Daily Graphic on the eve of events marking the 50th anniversary of the overthrow of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the country’s first president, said the coup was a major blow to the robust development agenda the CPP administration had for the country.

“The 1966 Coup can best be referred to as a tragedy for the country. It was a tragedy that pulled back the hand of the clock of development of this country. During Dr Nkrumah’s regime, nobody thought about the other being an Ewe, an Asante, a northerner or a southerner. It was all about one united Ghana,” he said.

Moment of reflection

He said the 50th anniversary celebration, which is dubbed “Marking Ghana’s Day of Shame”, ought to be a period of sober reflections on the values and ideologies of Dr Nkrumah, who he described as a freedom fighter, unifier, and selfless and patriotic leader.

According to him, there is the need for the country to adopt the module of development that was espoused by the CPP government, which was anchored on industrialisation and efficient exploitation of the country’s resources for local development.

“Dr Nkrumah did not think about Ghana alone. He thought of other Africans, hence on the day Ghana regained her independence, he made the famous declaration that Ghana’s independence was meaningless unless it was linked up with the total liberation of the African continent. Today, everyone thinks about their self-interest,” he said.

‘Vote back CPP’

The CPP chairman said the best way to remember the founding father of the country was for Ghanaians to vote the CPP back to power for it to continue with the good works in the education, health, transport, agriculture and other sectors.

He urged the public to work hard and be patriotic in order to rebuild the “broken bridges” in the economy in a spirit of love and harmony.