NPP stalwart and Chief Executive Officer of the State Transport Corporation, Nana Akomea shares a strong view that Alan Kyerematen's defection from the New Patriotic Party will have no significant effect on the party's political fortunes.
Alan Kyerematen, at a press conference on Monday, September 25, announced he has severed ties with the New Patriotic Party(NPP).
"I joined the New Patriotic Party at the very beginning of its establishment as a Founding Member, believing in its core values and the long-standing traditions of its antecedents, predicated on fairness, equity, probity, accountability, and transparency.
" . . the NPP as it exists now has very little resemblance to the Party that I joined in 1992 and helped to nurture. The Party has been hijacked by a selected group of Party leaders and elders, government appointees, 'behind the curtain power brokers” and some unscrupulous Party apparatchiks", he expressed his disappointment in the NPP.
Alan emphasized he is "honourably resigning with immediate effect from the NPP to contest for the high office of the President of the Republic of Ghana as an independent presidential candidate".
Alan's breakaway, to some critics, won't augur well for the NPP but Nana Akomea dissents to such comments.
He doesn't believe Alan deserting the NPP will result in a mass exodus of the party's members and supporters nor his exit affect the party in any negative manner.
To him, Alan doesn't command power as people think he does in the New Patriotic Party.
Nana Akomea cited the votes that Alan polled in their Special Delegates Congress asserting it proves how little the impact of his separation from NPP will have on the party.
The STC boss expressed no fears over Alan forming a new movement to compete with the NPP in next year's elections.
" . . in NPP nobody is panicking...even the stalwarts who were behind Alan are standing firm in the party, so nobody is shaking," he told Kwami Sefa Kayi on Peace FM's morning show "Kokrokoo".
He, however, prayed that Alan Kyerematen maybe "will change his mind" and return to the NPP.
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Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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You see, when the political dynamic changes, it becomes very important for you to strategise to achieve your political goals and ambitions. In multi-party democracy, the emphasis is on competition, competence and hard work. Let me make a disection here just to make certain attributes of keen competitors who are both in the same party: hard work, competence and trustworthiness are their credentials. But it happens that one of them is vice-president at a given time, the other a cabinet minister, and both believe in modernity in terms of the technology of the time. Nevertheless, they both want to lead their beloved party to the presidency. It seems that, among other things, the fact that one is a vice-president gives him an advantage over the other in the party's internal electoral arrangements for the flagbearer race. What would you say if you were advising the relevant cabinet minister? Incidentally, I would have advised them to join forces by switching positions if they were to win the presidential election and form a new government, so that the vice-president would become president and the cabinet minister his vice-president. And I bet that their party, as hardworking and competent as they are, would have a chance of winning subsequent elections. Eventually, they will both be presidents of Ghana. Enough said.
Nana Akomeah, please don't be too optimistic. Fact is that within the rank and file of the NPP even before Allan's resignation, the ordinary NPP supporter doesn't look happy because they feel neglected, disrespected and forgotten after having made sacrifices to ensure the NPP wins the 2016 elections. I remember you were a deputy minister of Tourism and later a substantive minister in the Kufuor regime. You will be the first to admit that if Kufuor and his appointees were behaving like we are seeing now in terms of the relationship between party and government, there was no way Akuffo Addo will come to meet a formidable NPP to ride on to power. Remember Akuffo Addo led with 49% in the first round of the 2008 elections, this tells you the NPP was still the popular choice of majority of Ghanaians after 8 years in office thanks to the way and manner Kufuor and his appointees handled affairs, you (Akomeah) was one of them, so you know exactly what am saying. Can same be said today? If in 2016, in opposition you (NPP) secured a majority in parliament with 169 MP's only for this number to drop to 137 MP's in 4 years should tell you people are not happy. Again for Akuffo Addo's to garner 53.7% in 2016 to win the elections as an opposition candidate to now drop to 51% in 4 years when he's in power and for John Mahama to appreciate from his 44% in 2016 to 47% in 2020 should tell you something. If 2% of NPP supporters who feels their sacrifices have not be rewarded decide to vote for Alan knowing very well he can't win as an independent candidate can affect the fortunes of the party. Now the interesting thing is that some of those currently occupying political positions i e Ministers, MMDCE's, CEO's, presidential Staffers can boast of one biological child of their own who is 18 years and qualified to vote to " break the 8"for the NPP. Question then is; who's 18 year old's are you relying on to vote for the the party to " break the 8". The NPP communicators should be very careful in their public utterances in this whole Allan saga. People are already peeved, they should not add insult to injury. I commend the general secretary of the NPP, Justin Kodua Frimpong for the matured manner with which he addressed the press yesterday on Allan's resignation, hope the others take a cue from him.
How being biased can becloud the vision of brilliant people in Bawumia's campaign. Like the proverbial ***barred word*** who kept saying i have not been hit till he saw blood bleeding from the wounded side. Calling the bluff of Alan's resignation is like that. Very biased refereeing has made Alan resign NPP is still blind to the seriousness pf this. Anyway it had happened before or it may recccur. In 1979 the split position of NPP/UNC antecedent of the NPP party gave power to Hilla Limann. History most probably will repeat itself.
I do not believe that Alan has a good advisor in his political career because his behaviour in two instances has proven otherwise. As much as I strongly believe that Alan has overestimated his influence and importance in the NPP, there is no doubt about his competence and hard work, but in politics, strategy and patience are very critical in certain instances to achieve your goal or ambition. Then, given Alan's behaviour in this regard, he seems to be behaving as in kingdoms where the succession to the throne is hereditary. I used the example of US President Biden when he stepped aside for Mrs Clinton and later strategically enjoyed overwhelming support to become President in his old age. If I were advising Alan, I would have urged him to opt for the vice-presidency by declaring his resignation to throw his support behind Bawumia for the presidency and plan further to set a 16-year record and even beyond. The opposition party has no political message in terms of policy. Theirs is all about winning political power first without policies because they underestimate the electorate which is a lack of political maturity and a failure in arrival.