NEW TAFO AT STANDSTILL TO WELCOME JOHN MAHAMA (PAGE 14)

Commercial activities at New Tafo in the East Akyem Municipality and Ahomahomasu in the Fanteakwa District in the Eastern Region came to a standstill when hundreds of people thronged the streets to catch a glimpse of Mr John Dramani Mahama, the running mate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential aspirant.
The people who came out of their offices, shops and the market, freely expressed their admiration for Mr Mahama, who reciprocated with cheerful smiles and waved to them.
The politically charged atmosphere also saw most of the party’s teeming followers clad in party T-shirts, engaging in the gesture “Yeresesame”, in response to that made by Mr Mahama whom they accompanied from the streets to the rally grounds.
What added so much colour to the wild ecstasy was the fact that children and the youth joined their adult colleagues in the frenzy, singing and dancing along to the party’s campaign songs, particularly “African Money”, “Future Leaders, Yeresesame” and “Barrack, Barrack, Barrack Obama”.
At the Ahomahomasu School Park, the people, who were not deterred by the intermittent rainfall, expressed their preparedness to stand by the party and showed this by defying the downpour and paying keen attention to the message of the running mate.
At the New Tafo Zongo Park, the crowd also gathered in their hundreds to listen to and express their admiration and support for the party.
Accompanied by some executives of NDC, including its National Organiser, Mr Ofosu Ampofo, who is also the parliamentary aspirant for Fanteakwa Constituency, Mr Julius Debrah, Eastern Regional Chairman, and Mr Mark Woyongo, the parliamentary aspirant for Navrongo, Mr Mahama also called on the traditional rulers at Begoro and Osiem.
In his address, Mr Mahama expressed his profound appreciation to the people for coming together to demonstrate their desire to see an end to the New Patriotic Party administration.
He told the gathering to consider their economic status and compared it with that under the NDC administration in the past.
He particularly indicated that during the NDC’s regime a bag of cement which sold for GH¢2 was now selling at GH¢10, while a gallon of petrol, which was formerly sold at GH0.65 was now at GH¢5.4.
He therefore urged the people to massively vote out the NPP government, adding “God who gave the NPP power in 2000 and 2004 will hand over the power to the NDC in 2008”.
He reiterated the need for the party’s supporters to exercise their franchise in a peaceful manner, since “it is the NDC that is destined to win the elections”.
For his part, Mr Ampofo called on the party’s constituency executives to mobilise its supporters to take active part in the exhibition of the voters register to enable them acquire their identity cards and exercise their franchise in December.