NPP FIRED UP

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

By Charles Takyi-Boadu



The headquarters of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) became the centre of attraction yesterday, buzzing with a lot of activities.

This was when aspirants running for various national executive positions in the party thronged the place to file their nominations.

The filing of nominations seems to have brought a new lease of life in the largest opposition party in the country.

As early as 8:00am, supporters of the various contestants had started trouping in from various parts of the country, with some riding on horseback and motorbike amidst drumming and dancing.

Suddenly, there was a traffic build-up on the street in front of the party headquarters, located at Asylum Down in Accra, causing a serious jam.

There was near stampede when contestants started arriving at the location to file their nominations, with their teeming supporters behind them, with some being carried shoulder-high.

One thing that ran through the messages of each of the aspirants was the quest and promise to work for the NPP to wrest power from the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) come 2016 when the country goes to the polls to elect a president.

 
Commitment
Chief among them was former First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Freddie Blay, who is contesting for the Vice Chairmanship position.

After going through the basic formalities of filing his nominations; payment and submission of completed forms, Mr. Blay, who is also a former Member of Parliament (MP) for Ellembele in the Western Region, spoke to the media during which he spelt out his vision for the party in clear and simple terms.

He said he has a vision ‘to alongside others help so the party will be in a position not just to take power but build this country, correct the mistakes, develop the economy and make Ghana proud of the party I belong.’

‘This’, he said, ‘I am so willing, able and ready to do,’ adding that ‘next to serving God, your nation is second and me as an individual, I think I want to be an inspirer to the youth, a team player, bring about sanity in the economy of this country and restore individual Ghanaian confidence in leadership of political governance in this country.’

Mr Blay expressed grave concern about the gradual loss of confidence in politicians, especially those who get the opportunity to serve in government, cautioning, ‘If we are not careful, those of us who aspire to leadership and those of us who have played a part in ruling this country…Ghanaians are losing faith in politicians.

‘We need to correct that and I am ready and willing to play a part; to be a soldier in the army, to be in the trenches to fight alongside others who are ready with all humility to serve this country, that is my mission,’ he emphasized.

 
Contest
Others including Paul Afoko, who is running for the Chairmanship position, Yaw Buaben Asamoa and Kwabena Agyepong, both running for the position of General Secretary, also filed their papers.

The rest included incumbent National Women’s Organiser, Otiko Afisa Djaba and one of her key contenders Mawusi Nudezor Awity and a member of Young Patriots, Richard Nyamah, who is running for the position of National Youth Organiser, as well as Abubakar Sulemana popularly known as Laku-Laku for Nasara Coordinator, were also on hand to file their nominations before the close of day.

Alhaji Ahmed Awudu Sadat, a former Greater Accra Regional Coordinator for Nasara, also filed for the National Coordinator position.

At the close of filing yesterday, NPP Director of Elections, Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah said 44 out of the 46 people who picked nomination forms had filed, with only two unable to file.

The two, Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye and Mahama Mahmoud, who picked forms to contest for the positions of National Chairman and National Organiser respectively, stepped down for separate reasons.

While the good old Professor decided not to bow to pressure from party members to contest, Mahmoud decided to step down to throw his weight behind John Boadu, who is also running for the position of National Organiser.

 
 
 

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