NPP CAN SELL ME •Alan ‘C’ Says

Mr. Alan John Kwadwo Kyerematen, former Minister of Trade, Industry, Private Sector Development (PSD) and President's Special Initiative (PSI), and presently a presidential aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has stated that he is one personality the ruling party can successfully sell in order to win next year's presidential election.

Calling himself the 'Senior Prefect of NPP's New Generation Leaders', Alan 'C', as he is now called by the media, noted that even though the party had incumbency advantage in the forthcoming general elections, it would only be retained in power if it presented what he called, 'a new face, message and story' to the electorate.

The aspirant also opined that those who coined the name, 'Alan Cash' for him and expected the public to give a negative connotation to it were ashamed, saying those people must be blaming themselves by now because their plans had backfired.

Presenting 10 good reasons for his marketability stance when he granted an exclusive interview to DAILY GUIDE yesterday, the former minister said another key issue to be considered in picking the candidate, in addition to the aspirant's popularity within the NPP, was his marketability across the country.

The interview was a follow-up to an earlier one he granted Adakabre Frimpong Manso, morning show host of Hot 97.9 FM, an Accra-based radio station, in which he denied media reports that his supporters had created chaos at the recent Afahye Festival of the people of Oguaa.

He noted that the NPP had set a record that was beyond par, but also conceded that there were still a few gaps to be filled.

“For the NPP to retain power, the party needs a new face to tell a new story. In fact, a new message to be told by a new generation leader.

And I believe I am the most suitable among the new generation leaders, and therefore their senior prefect,” he observed.

Mr. Kyerematen noted that because the field of aspirants had become crowded, there was the need for a unifying force after the December congress of the party.

He said his performance so far had impressed a lot of people and was sure of bringing both the old and young on board.

The aspirant told the Hot 93.9 FM host he was sure of sweeping the votes of delegates of the ruling party at the congress.

“I may not be the most popular member of the NPP, but one thing I am sure of is that I am the most marketable of all the aspirants in the race.”

Mr Kyerematen said he hailed from nearly all the strategic regions of the country, adding that this would therefore make it easy for the party to sell him to the electorate.

Asked if he was bothered by the negative slants a section of the print media had given his campaign, he said he was not in the least perturbed, even though he was surprised that those doing so were his long-standing acquaintances.

“If anything at all, they have strengthened me. I take it as a training ground for tougher battles ahead, especially for the presidency,” he said.

Alan, who said he possessed a high record of service and commitment to the party by being a member of the National Executive Committee, the highest decision-making body of the party since 1992, said very few people in the race could match that record.

“I can tell you for sure that not more than three aspirants in the current race can boast of this record,” he hinted.

The former minister also revealed that he was a member of the Young Executive Forum of NPP, which produced at least eight of the current crop of cabinet ministers.

He was also the Chief Executive of the UN Entreprise Africa Programme, and was selected in 1994 alongside Bill Gates and John F. Kennedy Jnr. among 100 global future leaders, he disclosed.

As an economist and a lawyer, Alan said his experiences at Empretec Ghana Foundation, Unilever, and as an Ambassador and a minister had shaped him well for the job ahead, adding that he had a vision to revive old state enterprises.

“I am the candidate who has the kind of message that seems to consolidate the interests of the foot soldiers of the party by involving them in my campaign,” he concluded.

Mr. Kyerematen explained that with his kind of general acceptability and multi-ethnic background, coupled with his track record in office, the NPP would not have any problem marketing him.

He said he plans to bring to the table, a lot of development ideas which the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) would never lay claim to, stressing that after touring all the 230 constituencies in the country, he was encouraged by the level of reception he was given.

On the term, 'Alan Cash', he said he took it as a positive tag because many people had come to recognize how many of his ministry's policies had turned their lives around for the better.

“Many of my policies and ideas had virtually put monies into the pockets of a lot of people, and that is what had won me admiration all over the place; so nobody can give it a negative connotation,” he explained.

He said as a minister, he had successfully revived the Pwalugu Tomato Factory in the North, and Juapong Textiles Limited in the Volta Region, both of which were closed down for various reasons.

The former minister pointed out that, at least by bringing a number of dead factories back to life, he had put monies back into the pockets of hundreds of the companies' direct and indirect employees.