A well designed forum organized by the Tamale Ecclesiastical Province Pastoral Conference (TEPPCON) for Members of Parliament (MPs) of the three Northern Regions, Ministers, District Chief Executives and Traditional leaders nearly hit the rocks as about 98% of the participants constituting the politicians failed to turn up. The programme, which was aimed at finding strategies of developing the north and finding solutions to challenges affecting its development, rather attracted students of tertiary institutions who were invited at the dying moments to fill the Tamale GNAT hall to enable the Vice President who was the guest speaker to deliver his address. Out of the 49 MPs invited only three turned up, while the host minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idriss attended out of the six (6) Ministers of State invited. No District Chief Executive (DCE) showed up and only the President of the Northern Region House of Chiefs represented with the Upper East and Upper West Presidents. The Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAF) sponsored the forum and it was on the theme: "Strategies for the Development of Northern Ghana." In an interview with The Chronicle the TEPPCON Partnership Coordinator, Ms Agnes Gandaa, expressed disappointment at the insensitivity the political leaders had attached to the forum. She disclosed that all targeted groups were given about six months prior notice through invitation letters duly signed by the Tamale Metropolitan Arch Bishop, Most Rev. Gregory Kpiebaya. She averred that this was not the first time the political leaders had exhibited this gross absenteeism towards TEPPCON organized programmes with particular emphasis on a similar programme held last year. "I am very disappointed about the refusal of the MPs and the DCEs to respond to the letters sent to them. At least, in actual sense, we were expecting that they would reply us if they knew they would not be able to attend because that would have made them look more responsible and more concerned as officials who have been appointed to serve the supreme interest of the electorate or to ensure development," she remarked. When Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama took the stage to address the forum he also expressed disappointment at the poor attendance though the event could build the capacity of the targeted participants. He bemoaned the Ghanaian attitude of attaching less importance to events that have little or no chieftaincy or political flavour and however appealed to the organizers not to relent in their efforts of organizing beneficial forums for the populace. Alhaji Aliu Mahama tasked the few participants to come out with a "think tank" for the North. The Vice President indicated that the development of the three Northern Regions ought to be of national concern to bridge the wide economic disparities, which helps breed frequent social and political instability here in the North. The Dean of Students at the University for Development Studies (UDS), Professor Saa Dittoh, who delivered the keynote address was of the conviction that poverty in Northern Ghana could reduce by half, within the next foreseeable future, if government could manage to tar most of the roads, especially the Bamboi-Tinga, Fufulso-Sawla and Chiana-Wa roads to boost economic activities. The Metropolitan Catholic Arch-Bishop of Tamale, the Most Rev Gregory Ebo Kpiebaya and the Northern Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idriss were present to grace the occasion. Source: The Chronicle