CONFUSION OVER NPP SUHUM PRIMARIES (PAGE 16)

Story: Nana Konadu Agyeman, Suhum

DISAGREEMENTS over the eligibility of eight Nankese Polling Station Chairpersons to exercise their voting rights at the New Patriotic Party (NPP) primary at the Suhum Constituency on Monday led to confusion among the executive members of the party and the two parliamentary candidates, leading to an indefinite suspension of the primary .
The eight polling station chairmen, who were among the 102 delegates who were present to vote at the primary to be contested between the incumbent Member of Parliament for the area, Mr Frederick Opare-Ansah, and his sole challenger, Mr Bryan Acheampong, an Information Technology (IT) consultant, were said to have no voting rights.
This was because they, as delegates, failed to be elected as chairpersons of their respective polling stations in the last constituency elections of the party, a situation that is against the party’s national executive ruling that makes it mandatory that the electoral college should consist of only those who have been elected as chairpersons of their polling stations.
The tension-filled primary, which was brought under control by a number of armed policemen, led to the reconvening of a meeting between the regional and constituency executives to find an amicable solution to the problem.
However, the meeting, under the chairmanship of the Eastern Regional Chairman of the party, Mr Yaw Gyekye Amoabeng, came to an abrupt end when the sitting MP, Mr Opare-Ansah, and Mr Amoabeng were said to have exchanged words, causing the regional executive members to leave the venue unceremoniously.
That was after the executive, which included Mr Alecs Agobo, Eastern Regional Secretary of the party, and the Deputy Eastern Regional Minister, Mr Ofosu Asamoah, as well as constituency executives, had failed to resolve the issue.
According to credible party sources, while the incumbent MP and his supporters, including some of the delegates, favoured that the eight polling station chairpersons should be allowed to cast their votes, his opponent, Mr Acheampong, and his supporters were strongly against the decision.
According to Mr Opare-Ansah, the eight chairpersons were allowed to vote in the last constituency congress to elect polling station chairpersons for the national congress at the University of Ghana and other regional conferences to select delegates to elect regional executive two years ago.
He pointed out that if the eight delegates should be prevented from casting their votes at the primary, then the outcome of all the previous congresses that were held to select delegates for both the national and regional congresses “should be nullified”.
Furthermore, he expressed anger over the alleged remarks by Mr Amoabeng that the venue for the election was not conducive for human habitation and that the centre, the Adideso Social Centre, could pose a serious threat to the security of the delegates, as well as the executive members of the party, since the structure had no windows and doors.
However, his contender, Mr Acheampong, also put up the argument that since the ruling of the national executive of the party required that the electoral college should consist of only polling station chairpersons who had been elected in their respective constituencies, the eight Nankese Polling Station Chairpersons should be prevented from casting their votes as they had no voting right.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, the co-ordinator of Mr Acheampong’s campaign team, Mr Emmanuel Danso, deplored the biased attitude of the constituency executive towards Mr Acheampong, noting that such attitude had severely affected their administrative function.
“There is a calculated attempt by the constituency executive towards Mr Acheampong as they are bent on rigging the elections in favour of the sitting MP,” he said, adding that the constituency executive only provided the list of the names of the delegates and communicated the venue of the elections to Mr Acheampong a day to the event.
The unsuccessful primaries was, however, brought to an end when the Suhum Constituency Chairman of the party, Mr Yaw Addo, asked the delegates to exercise patience while attempts were being made to find a solution to the problem.
Meanwhile at the Ayensuano Constituency primary in the Suhum-Kraboa-Coaltar District, Mr Samuel Ayeh-Paye, a 35-year-old automobile engineer, secured 54 votes to beat the incumbent MP, Mr Godfred Otchere, who polled 35 votes.
The two-time MP congratulated Mr Ayeh-Paye and pledged his support for him to ensure that the party emerged victorious in the upcoming general election.