“Upper West Will Fall For Npp In 2016” – Regional Chair, PCs Declare

The Upper West Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Alhaji Abubakr Abdul Rahman, together with the newly elected parliamentary candidates of the party from the region have resolved to ensure that the NPP emerges as the dominant party in the region in 2016.

According to them, the very slim margins of victory chalked by candidates of the ruling NDC over them in the 2012 elections have been overturned, as everything on the ground points a “takeover of the Upper West Region by the NPP in 2016.”

Paying a courtesy call on the 2016 NPP flagbearer, on Wednesday, July 1, 2015, to introduce themselves as the party’s parliamentary candidates elected in the June 13 primaries, the NPP’s Upper West Chairman, who led the delegation, assured Nana Akufo-Addo, that “in 2016, the NPP will double its vote tally over what we had in 2012. The Upper West Region has changed and now sees the NPP as the party that can take them out of poverty into prosperity.”

He noted further that there is huge competition amongst the party’s newly elected candidates who “want to outdo each other and deliver their respective seats in 2016. This can only augur well for the NPP in 2016.”

In his remarks to the delegation, Akufo-Addo expressed his gratitude to them for making time, on a holiday, to call on him at his house and assure him of their determination to making the Upper West region another stronghold for the NPP.

The NPP flagbearer noted that, in as much as losing the 2012 election was not a pleasant experience, it was also painful that the party lost all the seats it held in the region in the parliamentary election.

“A founding father of the NPP’s tradition, Chief. S.D Dombo, was from the Upper West Region. Indeed, pivotal building blocks of our tradition can be traced to the region. Losing our foothold in 2012 was a painful experience for me,” Akufo-Addo said.

He continued, “I always prayed to God for an opportunity to remedy this situation, asking the Almighty that if that opportunity presented itself again, I will pay even greater attention to the region than I have done in the past. I am happy with the calibre of leaders at the helm of affairs in the region, in particular Chairman ‘Short’, and you, our new candidates. For the purposes of taking back the Upper West from the NDC, I am happy about the team we have in place.”

Akufo-Addo appealed to the new candidates to take the initiative, reach out and bring on board all aspirants, and their supporters, who were not successful in the primaries, “as this will make the task of winning your respective seats easier.”

On the propaganda being peddled by political opponents of the NPP that it has an agenda against some ethnic groups, he told the candidates and the leadership of the party in the region that “we are very much aware of the propaganda against our party, and a sterling performance in the Upper West region will be one of the biggest responses to that.”

Akufo-Addo further admonished the candidates to embark on a campaign devoid of insults, but rather project the virtues of the NPP through the use of decorous language.

“There is no need to descend into the gutter with our opponents in order for us to be victorious. Ghanaians know our track record and want the NPP back in power. The NDC steal half of our policies, and can’t even implement them. There is no reason for Ghana to be where it is now,” he maintained.

In concluding, he noted that the task of wrestling power from the NDC will not be an easy one, as “we are confronted with an opponent, who because of the largesse of power want to do everything possible to hang onto power. They are not concerned about improving the living conditions of Ghanaians, but rather continue to inflict further hardship on Ghanaians who are already suffering.”

Reclaim our heritage
On behalf of the newly elected candidates, Hon. Ambrose Dery, a former Upper West Regional Minister under the Kufuor government, and deputy Minority Leader in Parliament, who is also the NPP candidate for Nandom, told Nana Akufo-Addo that “we know we have to reclaim our heritage, win our seats and ensure we win 2016.”

The young candidates, which included 23-year old Kpieta Sung Jesse, the candidate for Jirapa, according to Ambrose Derry, are determined and motivated to win back the NPP’s lost glory in the region.

Present at the meeting were, amongst others: Patrick Adama, candidate for Sissala West;

Hon. Ambrose Derry, candidate for Nandom; Bayon Godfrey Tangu, candidate for Wa East; Kuusongno Daniel Dari, candidate for Wa West; Ridwan Abass Daud, candidate for Sissala East; Bright Yelviel Dong Baligi, candidate for Lambussie; Issahaku Moomin Tahiru, candidate for Wa Central; Kpieta Sung Jesse, candidate for Jirapa; and Anthony Abayifa Karbo, candidate for Lawra.