A group calling itself the Kasena Nankana Youth has hailed the appointment of Mr Mark Woyongo as the Minister for Defence. The group's members say they were inspired by Mr Woyongo's appointment because it showed that hard work pays. A statement issued in Accra lauded President John Mahama for recognising the former Upper East Regional Minister's role in bringing peace to the volatile region. Read the full statement below. KASENA NANKANA YOUTH LAUD NOMINATION OF MARK WOYONGO AS THE MINISTER OF DEFENSE, AND APPEAL FOR APPOINTMENT OF MORE WOMEN FROM NORTHERN GHANA We the youth of Kesena Nankana District in the Upper East Region wish to congratulate the president on winning the 2012 elections and subsequent nomination of our MP, Honourable Mark Woyogo for the Defense Ministry. Mr. President, “Kasenas being your slave masters,” humbly urge you to remain the firm and fair-minded leader that we know you to be and ignore the criticisms that are designed to distract you in delivering for the people of Ghana. We also want to congratulate Honourable Mark Woyogo for winning the Navrongo Central seat and being promoted to the Defense Ministry and wish him well in his meeting with the appointment committee. In our opinion, our MP has performed remarkably in the area of security as a Regional Minister during the late Prof. Atta Mills’ regime. We are confident that if he carries the same commitment to the Defense Ministry, Ghana as a country stands to benefit. Some of the outstanding successes chopped up by Honourable Mark Woyongo during his tenure as a Regional Minister for which reason we think he is more than qualified for this very important portfolio include but not limited to: 1. Since Mark Woyongo became the Minister of Upper East Region from 2009-2012, one major achievement that cannot be overlooked was his ability to bring the various factions in the Bawku conflict to agree on the need for peace and there is no doubt how volatile the security in Bawku has been since centuries. This contributed to the peace in the region in the 2012 elections and up to date. 2. In spite of the contrivances and propaganda during his appointment as a Regional Minister in 2009, he was one person who made the late Prof. Mills proud by delivering to his satisfaction that he was never affected by any of the ministerial reshuffling which affected almost all the Regional Ministers. He was then rewarded by the people of Navrongo Central Constituency who decided to vote for him as an MP despite the performance of the veteran former MP Honourable Joseph Kofi Ada who has been on the seat for more than a decade. 3. He insisted on even distribution of developmental projects in the region: building of schools, road networks, hospitals, bore holes and above all, a commercial solar panel project that seeks to provide alternative power to the region. We are convinced the appointment of Honourable Mark Woyongo, who brought stability to a region that was reputed as the most volatile region in Ghana to the Ministry of Defense can only be a perfect decision. We have no doubts in our minds that he will come up with innovations in the Defense Ministry to further project the image of the security and make Ghana a peaceful country to attract more investors. We are however worried that so far there has not been any woman nominee from Northern Ghana and would wish to encourage the president to put the skeptics to shame and appoint more competent women into his government especially those in Uppers East where women have no role in decision making but are relegated to the Kitchen and farming activities. Coming from a farming community, we wish also to appeal to the president to initiate more developmental projects in the country that will bring food on the table for all since he cannot provide for everyone individually. Mr. President must take bold steps towards agricultural transformation especially coming up with irrigation facilities to take advantage of the vast land in the Northern Ghana. This will not only create jobs for the unemployed youth, but will also reduce the high level of rural urban migration. Signed: Charles K. Nyaaba -0243 328 095 / 0203 035 672 Godfred Apio (King Kong) – 0208 783 433