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New Juaben NDC splits over the nomination of Mr Alex
Asamoah as MCE
Koforidua, April 10, Ghanadot/GNA
- Members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), in the
New Juaben Municipality, are divided over the Presidential
nomination of Mr Alex Asamoah, as the Municipal Chief
Executive.
A section of the members who are against the nomination,
claimed that when the party was in opposition, Mr Asamoah
who was the MCE before the NDC Government went into
opposition in 2000, dissociated himself from the party and
did not support the party activities in the constituency.
They, therefore, prefer Mr Ransford Owusu Boakye, the
Parliamentary Candidate of the party for New Juaben South,
in the 2008 general election.
The group, led by the Chairman of the New Juaben South
branch of the party, Mr Andrew Awuku and some executive
members, organized a press conference in Koforidua, on
Thursday, to register their protest against the nomination.
On the same day, another group, led by the New Juaben North
constituency chairman of the party, Mr Owusu Boahene Koduro,
with the support of some members of the Eastern Regional
Executive, organized another press conference in the
afternoon, to express their support for Mr Asamoah.
Speaking at the first press conference, Mr Awuku said when
the party was in opposition, Mr Asamoah, the nominee, never
visited the party office and even when he visited his
brother, whose tailoring shop is near the party office, he
did not visit the place to interact with the party
functionaries.
He said in 2004, when the branch approached Mr Asamoah for
financial support, he said, “his money do not do politics”
(sic).
Mr Awuku said last year, Mr Asamoah was approached by the
party to be its parliamentary candidate for the constituency
but he declined with the explanation that he was not
interested.
He said Mr Asamoah rather proposed to offer his son who was
in Europe to contest for the party but added that should he
be defeated; the party should be ready to pay for the
expenses that he would have incurred in the campaign.
Mr Awuku said, the nominee was not approachable and would
not be able to maintain the high momentum and interest that
the party had generated in the ordinary people of New Juaben,
which the party wanted to capitalize on in future elections.
He said it was Mr Ransford Owusu Boakye who offered to
resign from the public service to contest as the
Parliamentary candidate of the party and succeeded in
securing the highest votes ever for the party.
Mr Owusu Boakye should, therefore, be given the opportunity
as the MCE for New Juaben.
Meanwhile the second group, who held a press conference in
support of Mr Asamoah’s nomination, said he had what it
takes to develop the New Juaben Municipality.
Mr Joshua Attah Mensah, Propaganda Secretary of New Juaben
North Constituency of the party, who read a speech on behalf
of his colleagues, extolled the virtues of Mr Asamoah.
He said the disagreements that had characterized the
announcement of the various nominations was normal but
warned that if over stretched, it could lead to the erosion
of the credibility that the people in the country had in the
party.
Earlier, the Eastern Regional Organizer of the party, Mr
Bismark Tawiah Boateng, explained the procedure that was
adopted by the party for the nomination of the Metropolitan,
Municipal and District Chief Executives.
He said there were many positions that those who were not
nominated for the Metropolitan, Municipal or District chief
Executives could be appointed to.
He explained that when nominations are made, often some
people would kick against it while others would support it
but under democratic conditions, what mattered was the
majority decision.
Mr Boateng denied that President Atta-Mills promised any
parliamentary candidate an automatic qualification to become
a District Chief Executive if the fellow should lose the
Parliamentary elections.
He said it was rather the national executive of the party
that promised some candidates of the party in the Ashanti
Region when it was difficult for it to get candidates for
those constituencies.
GNA
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