The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Parliamentary Candidate for Abura Asebu Kwamankese, Felix Kwakye Ofosu has criticized the ruling New Patriotic Party following the recent rail accident on the Tema Mpakadan railway line.
The Special Aide to former President John Dramani Mahama in a scathing critique, strongly accused the Railway Ministry of negligence and incompetence in the discharge of its duties
Mr Kwakye Ofosu condemned what he described as a lack of intelligence and efficiency in the government’s handling of the trial testing of the newly purchased trains on the Tema-Mpakadan railway line.
He chastised some leading members of the ruling administration who according to him are engaging in deliberate tactics to deflect attention from the government’s shortcomings, leading to the accident.
“Rather than exhibit intelligence and efficiency in the discharge of their duties, elements within this government believe they should resort to rabble-rousing to deflect attention from their shortcomings leading to yesterday’s rail accident. Who in his right senses fails to carry out safety checks before and during the maiden test of a new train?”
Felix Kwakye Ofosu, NDC ‘s PC Abura Asebu Kwamankese
Furthermore, the former Deputy Minister of Communications under the erstwhile Mahama’s administration dismissed claims suggesting that the opposition National Democratic Congress had any interest in hindering the success of the Tema to Mpakadan project.
He described such claims as “pure nonsense” driven by “partisan immaturity”, thereby touting the National Democratic Congress’s role in securing funding for the project.
Notably, Mr Kwakye Ofosu noted that the National Democratic Congress administration led by former President John Dramani Mahama secured a loan of $398 million from the Indian Exim Bank for the execution of the project.
However, the National Democratic Congress Parliamentary Candidate for Abura Asebu Kwamankese criticized President Akufo-Addo and Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for prioritizing a $450 million Cathedral over far-reaching investments like the rail project.
The former Deputy Minister of Communications under the National Democratic Congress administration, Felix Kwakye Ofosu also chastised supporters of the ruling New Patriotic Party administration for overly celebrating the purchase of two trains.
Describing the celebration as a “wholesale fawning and drooling” over a single-unit train, Mr Kwakye Ofosu posited that the excitements are unwarranted, pointing out that trains had been operating in Ghana for decades before the near-collapse of the sector.
He cited the commissioning of multi-carriage trains by former President John Dramni Mahama in November 2016 to ply the Takoradi-Sekondi-Kojokrom rail line as evidence of the National Democratic Congress’s previous administration’s investment in the railway sector.
The opposition party’s parliamentary candidate concluded his remarks by urging government officials to take responsibility for the accident instead of deflecting blame.
He criticized what he described as a “nonsense narrative” being perpetrated by officials of the ruling party, which is being backed by their party loyalists.
Calls for Urgent Investigation
Meanwhile, Elikem Kotoko, the Deputy National Organizer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has called on the Ghana Police Service to conduct a detailed investigation regarding the train crash.
He began by calling for concrete evidence regarding the registration number and chassis number of the truck involved in the collision, emphasizing the importance of photographic evidence to validate the authenticity of the government’s claims.
He questioned the credibility of images circulating, by pointing to a post from over a year ago depicting a stationary truck, casting doubt on the current images provided by the ruling government.
Furthermore, the National Democratic Congress firebrand chastised the Sector Minister, Honorable John-Peter Amewu over his perceived involvement in the incident.
Mr Kotoko alleged that Mr Amewu’s remarks after the incident which aimed at garnering public sympathy raised suspicions of an orchestrated scenario.
He thus urged the Ghana Police Service to consider the Railway Minister, Honorable Peter Amewu as a suspect in the investigation, citing his possible motive and involvement in the matter.
“It is imperative therefore that the Sector Minister be considered a suspect in this matter as it is no secret that he has fallen out with the government and his interest therefore will be to see it fail, thus capable of staging this so it gives government a bad name whiles his favourite candidate Mr. John Alan Kojo Kyremanteng gains upper hand”.
Elikem Kotoko, NDC’s Deputy National Organizer
Mr Kotoko also expressed concerns over potential manipulation of evidence and called for transparency in providing details such as the driver’s identity, the truck’s registration plate, and its chassis number.
The Deputy National Organizer of the National Democratic Congress concluded his demands by seeking clarity on the timeline of events surrounding the collision and requesting information on the whereabouts of the destroyed vehicle.
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