Credible information reaching The Publishernewspaper indicates that many gurus and influential Members of Parliament on the ticket of the opposition New Patriotic Party will not be part of the next Parliament that will commence on January 7, 2013.
This follows their decisions not to seek renewal of mandate from their constituents in the 2012 general election. The MPs believe they have paid their dues and so the time has come for them to pave the way for others to show what they can also do for the NPP, the constituents and the nation at large.
The exiting MPs include Frema Opare, Ayawaso West Wuogon; Nana Akomea, Okaikwei South; Mike Oquaye, Dome-Kwabenya; and Hackman Owusu-Agyeman, New Juaben North.
The decision by the MPs not to seek re-election has set the stage for what promises to be a very fierce contest for the NPP’s parliamentary slot in their respective constituencies that remain strongholds of the party.
So far, five people have declared their intentions to contest the party’s parliamentary primary in the Ayawaso West Wuogon constituency.
They are Kyeremanteng Boakye Agyarko, former Chief Executive of the Food and Drugs Board; Omare Wadie, former constituency Chairman; Isaac Amoo, former MP for the constituency and former boss of NADMO; John Twumasi, who recently resigned as the constituency Chairman; and Affiah Appiah, a Development Worker.
Those seeking to replace Hackman Owusu-Agyeman in the New Juaben North constituency are Nana Akwasi Adjei-Boateng, former Municipal Chief Executive for New Juaben, who recently resigned as the constituency Chairman; Akora Sarpong, a renowned teacher at the Ghana International School; Kwasi Owusu Annor, a younger brother of Dr. Samuel Annor, the party’s Eastern Regional Chairman; and the London-based Osei Adjei.
Events in the Dome-Kwabenya constituency appear very interesting as Mike Oquaye Jnr, who recently resigned as the Greater Accra Regional Communications Director of the party, seeks to step into the big shoes of his father. He faces a stiff opposition from the young, beautiful lawyer, Adwoa Sarfoa, who is a daughter of the famous Apostle Kwadwo Sarfo. Vicky Bright, a former Minister of State at the Office of the President declared her intention to contest the primary in the Okaikwei South constituency. Her main challenger is the constituency Chairman.
Both Hackman Owusu-Agyeman and Nana Akomea are completing their fourth term in the nation’s Legislature while Mike Oquaye and Frema Opare are doing their second terms. They all served in various ministerial capacities in the previous Kufuor-led NPP government, distinguishing themselves creditable in the handling of their portfolios.
Hackman Owusu Agyeman, a founding member of the NPP, started as the Minister for Foreign Affairs and resigned as Interior Minister when he decided to run for the party’s presidential slot in 2007.
Just like his colleague, Mike Oquaye, incumbent 2nd Deputy Speaker of Parliament, was first appointed as Ghana’s Ambassador to India and resigned from the Kufuor government as Communications Minster in 2007 to contest the party’s presidential slot.
Nana Akomea, the newly appointed Communications Director of the NPP, started his ministerial responsibilities as Minister of Information, and ended as Minster for Employment and Social Welfare.
The exiting Ayawaso West Wuogon MP, Frema Opare, served as deputy Minister for Employment and Social Welfare in the Kufuor Administration.
Source: The Publisher