Former NPP member and a key member of the Movement for Change Samuel Owusu has called President Akufo-Addo’s District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP) and the commissioning of crucial equipment a political scam.
The DRIP is designed to empower Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) with the necessary resources and equipment to rehabilitate and maintain roads within their areas.
The initiative aligns with the government’s commitment to decentralisation, providing local authorities with the tools to effect meaningful change.
But Samuel Owusu says the initiative is a “419,” which was launched to deceive Ghanaians and seek political votes.
He stated the government has not disclosed the cost of the initiative, put into the public any document that shows that the equipment belongs to Ghana, and all other relevant matters surrounding the project.
To him, the initiative is shrouded in secrecy and the “greatest scam of all time”.
“What has been launched is the greatest scam on earth, and I will demonstrate why it is so. How is it that they have told us the equipment is 2,240, but they have not told us that the equipment belongs to Ghanaians? Where are the documents disclosing the ownership? The second point I want to outline is the cost of the equipment. Have they disclosed or told us the cost of the machines? I also want to point out that the president is not using his resources to develop Ghana. They are using taxes paid by Ghanaians.
So they cannot pretend as if these initiatives were done by a political party or with their resources. So clearly, it is the greatest scam of all time. Currently, we are witnessing an ambulance scandal. Some people have been awarded dubious spare parts contracts, and that case is brewing. Since we recently bought these ambulances, we’ve been told that their service agreement is only $34 million. What is the service agreement for these machines?”
He warned Ghanaians not to be duped by the idea, recalling how Freddie Blay, the former NPP Chairman, pledged to give each constituency a bus when he ran for national party chairman but did not follow through.
“This is the same strategy Freddie Blay used. How did he become the chairman of the NPP? He went around with buses, promising people that these buses would be for the constituencies. The party delegates gave Ted his name and voted for him, but after the elections, the buses disappeared. That is why I have also not supported him and also not supported President Akufo-Addo when he contested the internal elections. He is also fake. The machine launched is a scam. We are barely four months into the general elections, and so they want to bring in something to deceive Ghanaians.”
