We will work to win 2016 — NDC TEIN

Source: Daily Graphic Ghana  -  The Tertiary Educational Institutions Network (TEIN), a students wing of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has resolved to work tirelessly to make sure the party retains political power in 2016.

“We are close to maintaining power in 2016 and nothing will hold us back,’’ Mr Bright Somiah, the outgoing General Secretary of NDC-TEIN, University of Ghana, Legon branch, stated in an interview.

He said groups under TEIN were being divided into zones to work to achieve the President’s vision for the country. He stated that since the President had done a lot, he deserved a second term to continue his good works and that efforts would also be made by TEIN to focus on the various campuses to mop up every single vote that would come their way.

He, therefore, called for a stronger collaboration between the National and the Regional Secretariats of the NDC on one side and the various student groups that fell under TEIN to achieve set targets.

In the opinion of Mr Somiah, the NDC-TEIN would have failed as a student group if they were unable to have the President for a second term in office.

‘’We must be careful we don’t get distracted by opposing elements as at the end of the day, these same people will demand nothing short of accountability,’’ he advised.

Looking at the massive infrastructural development that had taken place in the areas such as health, education, roads and water, Mr Somiah stated that the NDC had laboured to come this far and it should not allow the gains to be eroded.

He also advised the rank and file of the NDC to not wait till active campaign period before starting to build the capacities of their members, as that would not inure to the benefit of the party.

He said since the NDC did not have the luxury of time to waste, members of the party must be given the logistics and the needed support to work hard on the ground.

In line with this, he commended the NDC leadership for putting in place formidable election committees ahead of the 2016 elections. He said these were very fine, intelligent, and influential personalities who could change the focus and fortune of the party for the better at any material moment.

He explained that the inauguration of a number of committees, which include the Economic committee, Election Committee, Communications Committee, and the Social Services Committee, would help NDC get its house in order towards Election 2016.

He charged the incoming TEIN executive to be receptive and open to new ideas to ensure that they ran a successful administration. He further said that they should try to recruit people with different perspectives so “we can have a rich, deliberative assembly and make sure they have a good working relationship with the office of the Dean of Students.”

Quizzed on whether the current economic and power situation in the country would affect the chances of the party in 2016 or not, he quickly dispelled that, saying the economic situation was not as bad as people wanted Ghanaians to believe..

The outgoing General Secretary observed that the government was making some steady progress and the potential for growth was very high.

On the power situation, he said in every case and circumstance, the President had demonstrated an unfailing commitment in ensuring that the issue was resolved permanently.

“Even before the full project took shape, we had begun to see signs of improvement as already most towns were enjoying a relatively stable power supply at the moment,” he said.