Opposition Parties Should Be Constructive Tools - AFRO

The Alliance for Responsible Opposition (AFRO), on Wednesday said it would create a positive and progressive atmosphere that would transform opposition political parties and movements into constructive tools for national development. Speaking at a press conference in Accra, Mr Lord Koranteng Hamah, Coordinating Secretary of AFRO, said Ghanaians were accustomed to thinking that the destiny of this country or any country lay in the priorities and policies of governing parties solely, without critical examination of the aspirations and strategies of opposition parties. He outlined the marks of an irresponsible opposition as failure to accept the legitimacy of the ruling party, resorting to violence and defamation of the lawful leadership of the country. Others are building alliances with foreign political and economic interests as a means to wrest power and sabotaging national development projects and the economy. Mr Hamah cited some instances where the opposition in Ghana had acted irresponsibly describing their actions as "reckless and against national economic interest and the general public good". He bemoaned the positions of some opposition political parties and movements on national issues such as the conflicts in the energy sector, lack of opposition support of the campaign to punish former government officials for crimes against the state and the decision by government to reverse the sale of government lands to political functionaries. Mr Hamah noted that the criticisms of ambitious infrastructure initiatives such as the STX Korea Housing Project bore striking resemblance to the opposition at the time to the Akosombo Dam and Tema Motorway projects under the Nkrumah administration. "The opposition under Nkrumah went as far as lobbying western governments to cut off funding for a project (Akosombo Dam) that has today become the backbone of the national economy." Mr Hamah commended the leadership of the opposition Convention People's Party (CPP) for its constructive contribution to nation building and pledged that the group would mobilize support for positive transformation of Ghana's politics to guarantee the conditions of national progress and development.