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A concerned supporters of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Central Region have called for an equal application of rules by the party’s National Executives.
According to the group, should the National Executives fail to arrest the current situation, the party could face an ignominious defeat in the 2024 general elections with grave consequences into the future.
The group, in a press conference on Thursday January 13, indicated that the General Secretary of the party, Mr. John Boadu, had released rules and regulations to regulate the conduct of the upcoming internal elections of the party, relative to the behavior and conduct of the would-be aspirants and their supporters, with particular emphasis on the presidential primary.[ads2]
However, they said, since the release of the rules and regulations, a number of high–ranking members of the Party have openly violated the rules and regulations by declaring their support for the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudud Bawumia.
The group believe those who have violated the rules have not been dealt with because of their positions in the party. The believe such act could cause the party in the 2024 general elections if not solved.
Below is their full statement…
Concerned NPP Supporters In Central Region
Call for equal application of rules by National Executive
Good morning Ladies and gentlemen of the media, and thank you all for responding to our invitation at short notice. We wish you all a fruitful new year.
Today’s press conference has been necessitated by certain disturbing development in our party, the New Patriotic Party. We the concerned members of the party in the Central Region have organized today’s press conference to stand in support of all the grassroots members of the party who have suffered one form of unfavorable discrimination or the other.
To begin with, we want to put it on record that we are all card-bearing members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) who are extremely disturbed by the current happenings in our party.[ads3]
We have come together to express our concerns about recent animal farm kind of leadership style the national and some regional executives of the party have demonstrated, which if not checked immediately and urgently could negatively affect our chances of winning the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections.
Ladies and Gentlemen, if you will recall, sometime last year, the General Secretary of our party, Mr. John Boadu, released certain Rules and Regulations to regulate the conduct of the upcoming internal elections of the party, relative to the behavior and conduct of the would-be aspirants and their supporters, with particular emphasis on the presidential primary.
According to the party, violators of the rules and regulations were to be dealt with in accordance with the party’s disciplinary procedures, which is spelt out in the party’s constitution.
Among the key directives were as follows:
No would-be aspirant should start campaigning for any position until when the party so directs.
No party official shall declare public support for any aspirant ahead of the official opening of nominations;
That no paraphernalia promoting or advertising any aspirant should be displayed publicly ahead of the opening of nominations.
However, since the release of the rules and regulations, a number of high–ranking members of the Party have openly violated the rules and regulations by declaring their support for the Vice President, Dr. Alhaji Mamoud Bawumia, who has left nobody in doubt of his ambition to become the party’s presidential candidate.
Prominent among these party officials who have blatantly violated the party’s rules and regulations are as follows: Deputy General Secretary of the party, Mr Obiri Boahen, the Northern Regional Executives led by chairman Samba, the first Vice regional chairman of Ashanti, Mr. Kwabena Nsenkyire, the Member of Parliament for Karaga Hon Amin Anta, the Member of parliament for Tolon Hon Habib Iddrisu and Hon Farouk Mahama, MP for Yendi and some others.[ads4]
Interestingly, even though the actions of the above-mentioned officials and senior members clearly violate the party’s code of conduct, none of these blatant violators has been called to order by the National Executives of the party.
The worse of it, at the recent National Delegates conference of the party, which was held in Kumasi, no less a person than the Vice President, Alhaji Dr. Bawumia, who was part of the very body that promulgated the party’s rules and regulations, in wanton disregard of the same rules and regulations, arrived at the conference grounds with supporters wearing his branded T-shirts and banners announcing his campaign for the Flagbearership.
As if breaching the code of conduct wasn’t embarrassing, the Vice President and cohorts, in their desperation, went as far as breaching the State’s protocol, as he and his followers arrived late to the function, well after His Excellency the President, Nana Akufo-Addo, was seated with the First Lady and other dignidignitarie
In spite of these embarrassing conducts, nobody in the National Executive, including Mr. John Boadu, the General- Secretary, who announced the sanctions, has come out to condemn it or say anything about it.
However, in a animal-farm selective justice fashion, when supporters of other aspirants, particularly Hon. Alan Kyerematen, a founding member of the party, try to stand their ground and protect their own, they are either immediately rounded up by security agencies or subjected to acts of intimidation and senseless suspension.
A clear case in point is the arrest and detention of some supporters of Hon Alan Kyerematen, Minister for Trade and Industry, a leading contender to the flagbearership, at the just ended National Delegates Conference, for protesting the flagrant abuse of the Party’s regulations.
Simular incidents happened recently in Tamale, Northern Region, where known Alan Kyerematen supporters have either been suspended or arrested and put in police cells for defending their own or speaking out injustices in the party.
These acts of selective application of the party’s rules and regulations, must certainly be of concern to any true member of the party hoping for victory in 2024. When people feel intimidated or discriminated against, they either recoil or rebel. When people decide to recoil as a result of what is currently happening in the party, it would definitely affect our chances in the 2024 election. And, when people decide to rebel by fighting back, it would lead to disintegration of the party and, hence, negatively affect our chances.
Things are really falling apart in today’s NPP. All of a sudden, the NPP, which in the years gone by, was touted as the most tolerant and democratic party, where all shades of opinion were welcomed, and positions were competed for fairly and devoid of acrimony, appears to be shedding its colorful feathers for a garb of intolerance, bigotry and blatant disregard of its own rules and regulations.
The likes of B.J daRocha and Peter Ala-Adjetey, who stood for justice and fairness, must be turning in their graves.
Our fear, Ladies and Gentlemen, is that if the current situation is not arrested and every member of the party made to feel an equal member with equal opportunities, the party could face an ignominious defeat in 2024 with grave consequences into the future.
We want to use this opportunity to appeal to President Akufo-Addo, former President JA Kufuor, former chairman Odoi-Sykes, and leading personalities including Kojo Mpiani, Osafo-Marfo, Kwame Pianim, Hackman Owusu-Agyeman, Ama Busia, among others to stand and make their voices be heard immediately and urgently.
Failure to do this will certainly have grave consequences for our beloved great NPP.
Thank you.
Long live the NPP[ads5]
Long live Ghana
