A member of the Communications Team of the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP) Solomon Owusu has stated that Flagbearer hopeful, Alan Kyerematen will not be persuaded to partner with Vice President Dr Bawumia in the 2024 Presidential election.
According to him, there are all indications that the Minister of Trade and Industry will be the party’s next presidential candidate, and no attempt to make him play a second fiddle will succeed.
His comments come on the back of a call by former Director of Communications of the NPP, Nana Akomea, asking the party to halt its planned presidential primaries and convince Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and Alan Kyerematen to run together in the 2024 presidential election.
The two are expected to contest against each other for the first time in a keen contest. Although this will be the Vice President, Dr. Bawumia’s first attempt, Mr Kyerematen, the current Trade, and Industry Minister, has contested against Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo thrice before he was elected President in 2016.
According to Nana Akomea, the two leading candidates in the NPP presidential race meet the requirements of the north and south balance, and so taking advantage of that to allow them to run, will prevent a rancorous contest.
“The party should be able to have a consensus and have the two leading candidates, run together. For a very simple reason, for the first time, the two leading candidates satisfy the North-South divide. If Alan won, he is most likely to choose a candidate from the North, if Bawumia won, he is most likely to choose a candidate from the South. It is going to resolve an acrimonious situation that the party may not be able to recover from.”
“I would want a certain consensus to be built within the party to have the two of them run together. As to who becomes running mate, we should leave it to them once the party feels that is the way should go.” Nana Akomea said on Citi TV.
However, commenting on the issue on Ghana Kasa show on Kasapa FM/Agoo TV Wednesday, Solomon Owusu who’s a known Alan Kyerematen loyalist said this agenda Nana Akomea wants to throw into the system will not be entertained.
“When Global Info Analytics did its survey in February and said Bawumia was leading in who becomes the NPP Flagbearer for the 2024 election, we did not hear a word from Nana Akomea. Now, in April, the same research institution has published a report that says Alan Kyerematen is in a comfortable lead. All of a sudden there’s a clamour for Alan-Bawumia ticket, this is not going to wash. Let me say this emphatically, all indications show that Alan Kyerematen will be NPP’s Flagbearer and nobody can cajole him to nominate any person against his will in consultation with the National Council.
He added: “It is not even good for the party that two persons who have contested themselves should be made a flagbearer and a running party. The confusion that it will bring will collapse the party. So, Nana Akomea should not go there at all. He should concentrate on his work at STC. Everyone has his or her vision in life. If, I’ve come to contest as a Flagbearer, nobody should ask me to become a running mate. In any case, of the two – Alan and Bawumia, who’s going to be the Flagbearer, and who’ll be the running mate? Who will have the balls to stand in front of Alan Kyerematen and tell him to be a running mate” he quizzed?
Source: Kasapafmonline.com
