Mad rush for NPP nomination forms

Following the opening of nomination for primaries by the New Patriotic Party (NPP), for prospective Parliamentary aspirants in the country, offices of the party were busy receiving candidates. All the 230 constituency offices of the party were busy attending to aspiring MPs, most importantly receiving payment of nomination fees and filing of nomination papers.

The Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the 2012 elections, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo after the opening exhorted prospective Parliamentary aspirants of the party to assess themselves critically before deciding to pick up nomination forms.

He said the party encountered difficulties in the last Parliamentary primaries which was a contributory factor to the party’s defeat in the 2008 general election.

Addressing parliamentary aspirants, polling station chairmen and constituency executives of the party in the nine constituencies of the Central Region at Agona Swedru last weekend, he said if aspirants assessed themselves very well, the party would not face any difficulties in its primaries and during the campaign work in the 2012 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

Nana Akufo-Addo warned Constituency, Regional and National executives of the party to stay way from the Parliamentary primaries and leave the local people to elect their candidates.

According to him “it is against the laws of the party for these executive members to secretly support aspirants in the constituencies and influence delegates to vote for their choices”.

He said the NPP wanted unity and understanding after the primaries that had been scheduled to take place on April 30, 2011 in all the 230 constituencies simultaneously.

He said it was untrue that he was inciting Ghanaians to go to war following his ‘All Die be die” statement as was being speculated by some political opponents.

According to him he was rather exhorting supporters of the party to be vigilant during the elections to avoid cheating.

Nana Akufo-Addo said he was one of the politicians in the country who loved peace, democracy and rule of law and would therefore not allow or incite people to ferment trouble or throw the country into anarchy.

Mr Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, General Secretary of the Party said nominations for the Parliamentary Primaries would be opened on 28 February, 2011 and urged the prospective aspirants to pick their forms from their various constituencies.

Mr Jake O. Lamptey, National Chairman of the Party, urged the aspirants to undertake clean-up exercises and to ensure peace and harmony prevailed in the party.

Source: GNA