The 2012 Presidential Candidate of the NPP, Nana Akufo-Addo has called on the entire members of the NPP to remember that “in everything we do from now to 2012, the ultimate objective is winning back power and I implore all of us to continuously be guided by this.”
He noted that “the Ghanaian people are looking up to us in the NPP to come back to power and rescue them from the current suffering and hardships that the Mills-Mahama government of the NDC is imposing on them. Let us continue to conduct ourselves in a winsome manner and by the grace of God we shall come back to power.”
He was speaking at the Techiman residence of the MP for Techiman North, Prof Ameyaw Ekumfi, Thursday when he and the national executive of the party met with regional and constituency executives and parliamentary hopefuls in the Brong Ahafo region ahead of the upcoming April 30 parliamentary primaries of the party.
Nana Addo stressed that “everything our party has done since the unfortunate defeat of 2008 has been very successful. The constitutional amendments of 2009 that gave birth to the massive expansion of our electoral college from a little over 2000 to 115,000 delegates, the elections of polling station, constituency, regional and national executives of the party also took place without incident.
Even more impressive was the election of the presidential candidate, which election has placed our party even higher up the ladder on our continent. Our party has held itself together since 2008.”
He continued that “all the successes and improvements we have made as a party since 2008 will come to nothing if we do not conduct these upcoming parliamentary primaries with the same kind of maturity and spirit.”
He called on every member of the party to put the party first in everything they do adding that “you can serve your party in many different ways and not necessarily as a member of parliament.”
He charged the executives of the party at all levels, from national to constituency, not to take sides in the parliamentary elections. He noted that “I can confidently tell you that our national Chairman, Mr. Jake Otanka Obetsebi Lamptey and his team of national officers have no preferred candidate and are determined to conduct a free, fair, open and transparent election.”
He called on delegates “to vote for hardworking men and women who can take our message to every nook and cranny of our country. Candidates who can help maximize our votes to ensure that we win both the presidential and parliamentary elections of 2012.”
Nana Addo also called on party members “to be courageous and resolute as we move into the 2012 elections so that on Election Day, what the NPP deserves is what will be declared for us. The NDC have decided to resort to intimidation and violence as the only way to win elections in our country and I call on all of you, NPP people across the length and breadth of our country to stand up to the NDC and not allow them to cheat us in the 2012 elections.”
On his part the national chairman, Mr. Jake Obetsebi Lamptey urged all aspirants to stick to their campaign message and desist from peddling falsehoods about their competitors adding that “in the end it is the party that will suffer the consequences.”
He also noted that “the NPP is the single biggest political party in Ghana today and if we remain united and conduct ourselves in an appealing manner, no political party can beat us in any election.”
He concluded that “the people of Ghana will not give the power to us if they realize that we are not united or properly organised in our own party adding sharply that we have done very well since the defeat of 2008 and if we are able to cross this last hurdle of parliamentary candidates elections with success, Insha Allah, Ghanaians will return us to power.”