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President John Evans Atta Mills has at least for now, silenced his numerous critics who have constantly been harping on about his tortoise-like pace of honouring the numerous campaign promises he made and have even christened him �Go Slow�, to do him a favour by adding two important words; �But Sure�. �Madam Speaker, when they talk about �Go Slow�, they should do me the favour by adding two important words, �But Sure�, President Mills said as he delivered his second sessional address since coming into office in January last year. The President�s address touched on key national issues such as good governance, the economy, energy, education, health, international relations, agriculture, among other issues that are critical to the survival of the ordinary Ghanaian. In his maiden State of the Nation Address last year, President Mills explained to Ghanaians the challenges he inherited from the previous government and pledged to reverse what he described as the decline in the fortunes of Ghanaians. He also proposed to adopt austere measures in the expenditure pattern and promote a vibrant and globally competitive private sector in order to fix the economy. One year on, and from the perspective of many Ghanaians, the President does not appear to have that luxury of detailing the problems he inherited. But President Mills sought to disprove this when he told the 230 member legislature on Thursday, February 25th, that considering the strides made by his administration to better the lives of Ghanaians, he was optimistic that by the end of his four year tenure, the NDC will be voted back into power. ��one year after our election, I am proud to stand before you and say with confidence that the state of the nation is Good�Madam Speaker, if I�m to be tempted and indulge in a little of sloganeering, and compare the state of Ghana today to when we took over a year ago, I would say So far�Much Better�Madam Speaker, this gov�t has a four year mandate and at the end of that term the people of Ghana will judge us on the basis of our achievements and failures, and I�m certain that they will vote us back into power,� he said amidst heckling from the House. In an address characterized by catcalls and applause, what perhaps riled the opposition was the statement by President Mills that he �did not make a promise to put money in people�s pockets.� �Madam Speaker,�very often I hear the cry of our people�money is hard to come by. Some even ask the question, where is the money you promised to put in our pockets. Madam Speaker, if I remember correctly, I never made this promise. But I know some people who made that promise�We took over a run-down economy, characterized by unbridled spending and far too much so-sourcing that did not offer value for money. But in the face of these mountainous challenges, we can now offer good news and hope...we quickly halted the rapid depreciation of the cedi...Today we have a stable currency, as well as other indicators pointing to a healthy economic environment for real take-off into sustained growth,� President Mills said. He was particularly unhappy at and deplored the spectacle of destitutes on the streets and promised that whatever the Central Government is doing in the Housing sector, all Assemblies (MMDAs) will be directed to commit a substantial portion of their Common Fund allocations to rental housing. �Madam Speaker, Let me put it very bluntly! The spectacle of homeless people and street children in our urban areas is not acceptable and cannot be tolerated!...Beginning this year,...we shall expect our Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to invest a sizeable proportion of their District Assemblies Common Fund in rental housing for lower and lower-middle income groups. To make sure this happens, the Assemblies will be directed to commit a substantial portion of their Common Fund allocations to rental housing. A National District Assemblies Rental Housing Project Task Force will be established to oversee the project and make sure that this problem is given the highest priority,� he disclosed.