According to the NDC, there is no need for a celebration when the youth of the country have become victims of hardship brought on by the bad leadership of the current government.
“The Youth Wing is of the view that there is absolutely nothing for the youth to celebrate in these times of excruciating hardship that the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government has brought upon the Ghanaian youth through their bad governance, economic mismanagement, and pervasive corruption,” a statement signed by the National Youth Organiser of the NDC, George Opare Addo, said.
George Opare Addo
The 2022 International Youth Day commemoration will be marked on Friday, August 12, 2022, across the globe with the NYA set to lead the celebrations in Ghana.
However, according to the youth wing of the NDC, the current economic hardship in the country and the failure of the government to seek the welfare of the Ghanaian youth have informed their decision to boycott the event.
“The hardship is so dire that the youth struggle to afford one decent meal a day. To add insult to injury, prices of goods and services keep on increasing on the market every second.
“Contrary to the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government’s fanciful promises to create decent jobs for the youth, they have rather increased the unemployment situation through the collapse of businesses such as banks and other financial institutions, resulting in the laying-off of many of our youth. Many graduates, newly trained nurses, teachers, and other professionals remain home unemployed and wonder where their next meal will come from. Those in the informal sector already struggling to put body and soul together have been saddled with unbearable taxes to further worsen their precarious living standards,” the statement said.
Among various matters, the NDC youth wing raised issues of partisanship in government employment, excessive taxes crippling youth entrepreneurship, and non-payment of allowances to national service personnel as well as teachers and nursing trainees by the government.
“While government cannot find money to pay these allowances to give respite to young people, President Akufo-Addo finds money to rent luxurious jets at cut-throat prices at the detriment of suffering taxpayers so he can enjoy bathing in the sky,” the statement added.
The NDC said it bequeathed the current New Patriotic Party government a good number of youth development-focused policies, which have all been scuttled.
While highlighting a myriad of issues bedeviling the Ghanaian youth under the current administration, the NDC urged the youth of Ghana to exercise their franchise in protest against the government when the time presents itself.
Read the full statement by the NDC youth wing below:
Watch the latest GhanaWeb Special below:
IB/BOG
NDC Youth wing boycott International Youth Day