The Vice President has begun campaigning in areas where members of the NPP have broken ranks to contest as independent candidates in the Ashanti region.
This followes a decision by at least some ten NPP members to file the parliamentary election on their own after various misunderstandings during the party’s primaries.
But Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia who was at the Fomena Palace as part of his campaign tour stressed on the need for electorates to vote for candidates whose ambitions are in line with the governing NPP.
He used the opportunity to introduce the Fomena Candidate, Philip Ofori Asante, and Joseph Osei Owusu while reminding electorates to vote massively for the party.
“This is our parliamentary candidate for the constituency. We don’t support independent candidates.
“I know him personally as a banker when I worked with the Bank of Ghana. He is a credible candidate. Let’s vote for them”, he emphasized.
While the Regional Chairman of the NPP, Bernard Antwi Bosiako is championing an agenda 47/47 to win all seats in the Region for the party, this target is being threatened by the decision of some party members to go independent.
Touching on the development during a campaign at Bekwai, Mr. Antwi Bosiako said efforts to get Akwasi Amofah Agyemang to rescind his decision to contest Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei Owusu for the Bekwai seat has proven futile.
“I brought former IGP, Patrick Acheampong to speak to him to reconsider his decision but he refused. I brought Pastors, Chiefs, and former Ashanti Regional Minister, Yaw Amankwaa to speak to him but he didn’t listen”, he said.
“I made the President, Nana Akufo-Addo call him but he never honored the invitation. This shows he is very disrespectful. How can this person go to the President to seek developmental projects”.
It must however be noted that the Bekwai Constituency voted incumbent MP, Joseph Osei Wusu to Parliament as an independent candidate.
The story of Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah and how he lost the Bosomtwe seat to Deputy Education Minister, Osei Yaw Adutwum is the Party’s example for members going independent.
Mr. Osei Mensah used the platform to share his story to convince independent candidates to rescind their decisions.
“The pain I felt after being defeated didn’t make me contest as an independent candidate. I wouldn’t be Regional Minister if I had put my interest first. This is a lesson for us all”, he added.
At Fomena, incumbent MP, Andrew Amankwaa Asiamah is contesting the seat as an independent candidate after failing to contest the primaries due to what he describes as unfair treatment by party executives.
But the traditional authorities seem unhappy with his candidature.
“We wanted him to reconsider his decision to contest as an independent.
“But we are told he has filed his nomination and we are not happy with that”, Nana Kwasi Anawuo, who is the Linguist for the Adansi Fomena Traditional Council told Vice President Bawumia, when he and his entourage made a stop at the Fomena Palace.
