By: Maltiti Sayida Sadick
In the build up to the 2024 elections, in an exclusive interview on Manifesto Watch with host Maltiti Sayida Sadick, the running mate of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), Wayoe Ghanamanti, made strong declarations about the party’s plans for the country, particularly addressing the controversial issue of illegal mining, or “galamsey.”
Ghanamanti emphasized that during the peak of the Stop Galamsey demonstrations, “The courts should have stepped in to calm situations down. Sending the security force to demonstration grounds will not stop the situation.”
Ghanamanti pledged that the CPP would take decisive steps to “get the one million galamseyers off the water bodies and create viable employment for the youth. He added that he is the right man for the job as vice president of Ghana because he is principled and is a Rastafarian.
“Rastafari beliefs is about the doctrine not the dreadlocks, Dr Kwame Nkrumah was a Rastaman, Ex. President JJ Rawlings was a Rastaman and so is president Akufo-Addo, it’s about the doctrine he further explained”.
He mentioned that the CPP will fight for the voiceless and take steps to reclaim the degraded galamsey lands. “we are going to stop the small-scale mining regime and we will move all small scale mining to the medium scale”.
Touching on the party’s agriculture policy Ghanamannti touted the CPP’s ‘agro-sure policy’ explaining that the approach is to modernize the CPP’s 7-year development plan from the 60s. He added that, the CPP is reay to fight the seemingly unending corruption fight through the provision of requisite resources to the right authority like the Office of the Special Prosecutor.
“The CPP intends to fight corruption head on, the problem with this country is dissipation of our resources, so we will enhance the office of the special prosecutor he added. ‘my leader believes like Singapore’s Lee kuan yew that sometimes you must rule with an iron fist’ and so we are coming to leave a legacy in the country”, he added.
On law reforms, Ghanamannti said the CPP government when voted into power in December 2024 won’t incarcerate people for misdemeanors, but will rather use community service to reform the culprits and also the country at the same time. He said they will not be dumping offenders into jail, rather take them to state farms to work and this is geared towards changing the sentencing regime to decongest the prisons.
“The courts must sentence people with modern rational common sense’ he reiterated.
The CPP’s approach is to regulate the NABCO youth employment initiative by absorbing the people in the scheme. He also mentioned that on rebuilding the economy, Ghana will no longer deal with the Bretton woods institutions borrowing loans but rather keenly work hand in hand with the private sector. He further commended the Akufo-Addo led government for the introduction of the Free Senior High School policy and its implementation but aded that, it needs proper and well carved management.
“Briefly on education, I give kudos to the NPP for bringing free Senior High School (SHS), we are going to continue the free SHS initiative but properly managed Ghanamannti affirmed.”
