As the New Patriotic Party readies itself to open nominations for orphan constituencies in the Upper East Region, there is an apparent need for the party; leadership and delegates to find candidates who have the ability to unite the party.
The candidates also have to be resourceful and be able to support party activities thoroughly. This is according to the Upper East Regional Chairman, Anthony Namoo.
He made these comments when he spoke to Mark Smith on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show today, June 12, 2023.
Mr. Namoo quickly dispelled notions and allegations that in some constituencies, leadership of the party at the constituency and regional levels have their preferred candidates and are working against other candidates who may have interest in contesting.
“When you talk about a system, we don’t have a system. We are looking for candidates to help the party and as a matter of fact, we are looking for everybody to come on board. We would not be everywhere to campaign for candidates. We are looking at the people themselves looking to get candidates that can help and mobilise resources. Resources are also key.”
“You need somebody who can get resources; not having money as a person but his ability to bring [other people on board]. Resources also include human beings. If you are campaigning and you cannot bring people to come and support you, the natives; you can’t bring your own brothers to support you, then what are you doing? The resources are not just about materials and financial but also about human beings? You need to be a candidate who can be able to bring people on board and be able to work with different kinds of persons. Leading or managing a political party is huge. We are looking at a candidate who can fit in all this,” he said.
Mr. Namoo explained that it is only a perception that there are preferred candidates that executives would want to foist on delegates in the coming primaries.
“Ultimately, that is why we go for primaries so that a decision can be made if there is no compromise,” he added.
The Upper East Regional Chairman of the NPP explained that getting candidates are more nuanced issues that must be discussed with a lot of tact and context. He said, “There are some polling stations where the party does very well. There are some polling stations we don’t do well. People would want to look for candidates in some areas where you can maximise the votes to win. Of course, analyses are made and then you have to look at where you are very strong and work accordingly. It is all over in every political endeavour.”
Source: A1radioonline.com|101.1MHz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana
