Leave Otiko alone-NPP women group to Bugri Naabu

A women’s group, the Concerned Women of Ghana have registered their disapproval at what they described as the “constant abuse, name calling, character assassination and deliberate attempt by the Northern Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Daniel Bugri Naabu against the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Otiko Afisah Djaba.

The women have also questioned why the NPP Regional Chairman continued to incite the various youth and women groups in Tamale to demonize the Minister and violently interfere in her work especially the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP).

Addressing a Press Conference in Accra yesterday, the Spokesperson of the Concerned Women of Ghana, Madam Christiana L. Nkansah called on the President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and other well-meaning Ghanaians to come out to condemn the behavior of Mr. Bugri Naabu and his cohorts.

“As women of Ghana who are keenly following the work of Hon. Otiko Afisah Djaba as one of the most hardworking Ministers in Nana Addo’s government, we deem it appropriate to offer her the needed support and protection from people like Bugri Naabu in order to ensure the smooth implementation of the good policies and programmes of the government”.

The about 74 women from difference professional and political backgrounds, maintained that they had been silent and patient for far too long, expecting the government and other well-meaning Ghanaians to restrain or call Mr. Bugri Naabu and his cohorts to order, but to no avail.

They observed that Mr. Bugri Naabu and his cohorts’ continuous behavior had given the government a bad name in the Northern Region particularly in his (Bugri’s) attempt to demonize or defame people like Hon. Otiko Afisah Djaba, Hon. Salifu Saeed (Northern Regional Minister), Hon. Solomon Boar (Deputy Northern Regional Minister), Hon. Iddrisu Musah Superior (Mayor of Tamale) and many others.

“Turning himself into a tin god and a “bulldozer”, Bugri Naabu has succeeded in taking unilateral decisions to sack even the NPP Regional Council of Elders, Constituency party chairmen, deputy chairmen and women organisers just to satisfy his own parochial interest. He therefore feels that he can hide behind the youth and other groups to stage agitations, paint Hon. Otiko Djaba black and make her unpopular in the eyes of Ghanaians. Enough is enough! Bugri Naabu must be called to order. He must stop behaving as if he is the only one who worked to bring the NPP to power and thus expects his personal interests to be above the supreme interest of all Ghanaians. In fact, Otiko ABR£!”.

The Concerned Women emphatically charged Mr. Bugri Naabu to stop organizing NPP youth and women organisers, and also stop inciting them to undertake actions that bring the government’s name into disrepute.

They maintained that they were fully aware of his clandestine involvement in the recent locking up of the Northern Regional offices of the Ghana School Feeding Programme by the NPP Burma Camp group in Tamale, and also aware that Mr. Naabu was behind all the demonstrations, press conferences and media attacks on Hon. Otiko Afisah Djaba in the region.

The women said that they have enough evidences to affirm that some of the Press Conferences were held in Bugri Naabu’s private residence at Fuo and the recent ones at the Nyohini Presbyterian school and Mafara Hotel.

The Concerned Women condemned the “reckless incitement and creation of tribal tension among coordinators of the Ghana School Feeding Programme in the Northern Region by the youth group. They described it as “highly irresponsible and very dangerous”.

It would be recalled that the NPP Burma Camp locked up the Northern Regional Offices of the Ghana School Feeding Programme accusing the sector Minister, Otiko Djaba of appointing only Gonjas as Zonal Coordinators of the programme.

However, the Concerned Women said that their decision to come out to condemn the attacks on Otiko Afisah Djaba was necessitated by her decision to give more employment opportunities to Ghanaian women to bridge the gender imbalance. Over 95% of the zonal coordinators and caterers of the GSFP are women.

They congratulated Madam Otiko Djaba and the President, Nana Addo for remembering and offering the widows of the late Mr. Kwadwo Baah Wiredu (Former Finance Minister) and the Late Courage Quarshigah (Former Health Minister) enviable positions in the Ghana School Feeding Programme.

Their statement was signed by Madam Christiana L. Nkansah from the Greater Accra Region, Madam Golly Boasiako from Western Region, Madam Fati Vondolie from Eastern Region, Madam Agnes Owusu from Central Region and Madam Doris Ansah from Brong Ahafo region.

Source:thenationalpenonline.com/2017/Ghana