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Papa Kwesi Nduom

Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom is a practising Catholic with beliefs strongly rooted in family values and social responsibility, with a larger commitment to ensure the living conditions of Ghanaians are improved. As someone who believes in family values, Dr. Nduom is successfully married to Mrs. Yvonne Nduom, a management specialist. They have four children. In private life, Dr. Nduom has created businesses that employ over 4,000 Ghanaians in all the ten regions of Ghana. His active role in politics started in 1997 when he was elected as the Assembly member of the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem District Assembly for the Akotobinsin Electoral Area in the Central Region. In December 2000, he contested the parliamentary elections for the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem Constituency on the ticket of the CPP. He lost to the incumbent MP at the time, Ato Quarshie, of the National Democratic Congress in a disputed race by a margin of 2.6% of the valid votes cast. wo months later he was however appointed by President John Agyekum Kufuor as the Minister for Energy even though he was not a member of the ruling New Patriotic Party. He also served during this period as the chairman of the National Development Planning Commission. He served in various ministries in the Kufuor administration including the Minister for Public Sector Reform. In the 2004 parliamentary elections Dr. Nduom again contested the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abirem seat which he won with a majority of 15,554 (33.6%). At the same time, he served as the chairman of the Organising Committee of the CPP. Dr. Nduom also served as the Minister of Economic Planning and Regional Cooperation under the erstwhile Kufuor administration. He was also the chairman of the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA), where his efforts brought Ghana GH¢547million Millennium Challenge Account grant In December 2007, Nduom was elected by the CPP to contest the December 2008 presidential elections. As the 2008 presidential candidate of the CPP, Dr. Nduom put up a vigorous campaign but that could not translate into votes as the party performed poorly once again. That abysmal performance was attributable to elements within the CPP who worked against him. Even after that, Dr. Nduom did not relent in his efforts to ensure that the party becomes well organised at the grassroots and polling station levels. Shortly after the party had elected new executives at the Trade Fair Site, Accra, Dr. Nduom promised to open 60 new party offices throughout the country. That genuine support by Dr. Nduom to see a vibrant and formidable CPP to contest and win elections was misinterpreted by some CPP would-be leaders as a means by him to take over the party. Events afterwards saw the CPP national executive joining the fray and accusing Dr. Nduom of creating disaffection in the party. With these developments and the obvious fact that the new CPP executives were not in tandem with Dr. Nduom's effort to build a vibrant CPP through polling station organisation, Dr. Nduom was compelled to take the hard decision of quitting the party. That development enabled like-minded people who wanted to build a strong, purposeful alternative to the NDC and NPP parties to decide to start a new progressive political movement. Dr. Nduom at a well attended press conference organised at the Ghana International Press Centre on 28th December, 2011 declared his decision to quit the CPP and move on. "…When the Convention People's Party opens its nominations next month to elect a presidential candidate, I will not participate in that process." Giving reasons for his decision, Dr. Nduom explained that he aims to look forward to a new and different political order," Dr. Nduom announced at the press conference. And it was along this line that he declared his resolve to work with like-minded people across the country to form a much focused, vibrant, independent-minded and progressive political movement to contest the 2012 General Election. Dr. Nduom however wished the CPP well in its activities. Shortly after quitting the party, Dr. Nduom hit the ground running urging like-minded and independent minded Ghanaians to join forces to form a new Independent Progressive Movement that would be broad-based and offer Ghanaians the change that they have been yearning for. And as part of the process of forming a real third force to the NDC and the NPP, a collective of progressive minded Ghanaians formed the Progressive People's Party (PPP). Dr. Nduom joined the leadership of the PPP to embark upon a nation-wide field organisation where regional and constituency executives were elected in interim capacities to run affairs of the party. That exercise ended with the inauguration of Greater Accra PPP regional and constituency executives at the Kama Conference Centre on January 11th 2012. Within a period of just two months of bursting onto the political scene, the PPP is making a lot of inroads by winning and attracting lots of Ghanaians at home and abroad, who have expressed their strong desire to become members of the new political party, and expect to work hard to contest keenly the 2012 General Elections. The PPP aims to implement an Agenda for Change when the party's candidate is made President of the Republic of Ghana come January 2013.