Report by Nana POKU
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has decided to throw away its longstanding conventions on putting candidates through elections before endorsement by the party to become parliamentary candidates.
The General Secretary of the party announced yesterday that the party has decided to do away with primaries for the upcoming Akwata by-election. It has rather settled on Solomon Kwame Asumadu a treasurer of the party at the constituency to stand on the party’s ticket to contest the forthcoming by election at Akwatia following the death of Ernest Kumi.
Briefing newsmen at the party’s head office, the scribe indicated that it is a choice that received absolute consensus from research the party conducted.
According to the scribe, the National Executive Committee set up a committee to go to Akwatia for a fact-finding mission to ascertain the facts on the ground.
This search led to the favorite choice of Mr Asumadu, which the grassroots ‘unanimously’ agreed to be their choice.
The claim of unanimity is however questionable, since no vote was held.
Mr Kodua Frimpong told the press that a seven-member Committee went to Akwatia and consulted the elders, chiefs, opinion leaders, men and women, party executives, party members and that they all chose among four others.
He assured the party that the committee did a good job and the choice was a good one that is likely to win the elections.
JFK intimated that the party has therefore suspended all campaigns until the Akwatia by-elections are over. He therefore advised all aspirants to hold on with their campaigns until the elections are over.
Meanwhile, the party has opened for nominations of aspiring presidential candidates to pick their nomination forms, pay 100,000ghc, and a fee of GHC 500,000 after submission of the forms.
In addition to these fees, aspirants will be asked to make contributions towards the party for their activities.
The Gen Secretary touched on some other issues affecting the country.
These are the Galamsey menace, Bawku conflict and the suspension of the Chief Justice.
