Jake leads NPP to face NDC
JAKE OKANTA OBETSEBI-Lamptey was, at exactly 12:06am on Sunday February 28, 2010, elected National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), by 4,384 delegates that attended the party's historic mammoth conference at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi.
He polled 2,030 of the valid votes cast to edge out his closest rival, Stephen Ayesu Ntim, who had 1,804 votes to place second, at the congress themed, 'Reflect, Rebuild and Recapture.'
Bookmakers had predicted a close contest and the election lived up to its pre-conference billing, as the other contestants trailed behind with paltry votes.
Jake had pledged, in his short address to the delegates prior to the start of voting, to lead the party to the Jubilee House in 2012 if given the nod, and his wishes were granted as he won the majority of votes cast to replace the outgoing chairman, Peter Mac Manu.
He vowed to lead the party to recapture political power in the 2012 elections, calling for an end to complaints and bickering in the party.
"The country is crying, the people are suffering; they are in depression, looking to the NPP to come to their rescue", he said, drawing applause from the jubilant supporters.
With his election, the light-skinned political pundit, a son of one of Ghana's historic 'Big Six' who was twice former NPP Chairman for the Greater Accra Region, replaces Mr. Mac Manu who served just one term.
The third, fourth and fifth positions in the chairmanship race were taken by Samuel K.A.B Crabbe, with 43 votes; Charles Wereko-Brobby, 29 votes; and Felix Kwasi Owusu Adjapong, former Majority Leader, 25 votes.
There were spontaneous wild jubilations at the filled-to-capacity VIP section of the stadium immediately the Electoral Commissioner announced the results of the hotly-contested polls.
Clad in party colours, delegates at the stadium were seen dancing together amid chants that 'NPP had shamed its enemies'.
This made it extremely difficult for people to clearly mark out supporters of the winners and losers in the trouble-free polls, since everyone seemed to have jumped into the victory mood.
However, a visible black spot in the highly successful elections was Stephen Ntim's early exit from the Baba Yara Stadium which made it impossible for him to give his solidarity message to the winner when he was called upon to do so.
In attendance were party gurus drawn from various corners of the country; prominent among whom was former President John Agyekum Kufuor who was accorded a rousing welcome, temporarily stealing the show.
The 71-year-old former President, who looked energetic, set the stadium ablaze when he mounted the podium to give his address as the party supporters shouted “Paapao denden.”
Also at the stadium were Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Alan Kyerematen, two leading contestants in the party's flagbearership race, who sat together and displayed unique political maturity by sharing ideas amid smiles throughout the electoral process.
Isaac Osei and Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, whose names have in recent times popped up in the NPP presidential race expected to come off later this year, were also there to add glamour to the occasion.
Members of the diplomatic corps were not left out, just as representatives of other political parties.
Founding fathers of the party, sitting and past Members of Parliament (MPs) as well as other prominent leading members of the NPP also attended the programme in their numbers.
In all, 32 staunch party persons vied for eight vacant national positions to steer the affairs of the NPP in the next four years in an election which lasted eight hours.
In the National Vice Chairman race, Fred Oware emerged tops with 2,964 votes, followed by Sheikh T.B. Damba, aka 'Bumper to Bumper' who bagged 1,798 and Sophia Horner-Sam, former deputy Minister of Harbours and Railways, 1,743 votes. They were therefore declared the First, Second and Third Vice Chairpersons respectively.
Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie aka 'Sir John,' caused the biggest upset of the day when he easily swept the General Secretary position with 2,386 votes to dethrone the incumbent, Nana Ohene Ntow, who finished a distant second with 918 votes.
In the National Organizer contest, Alhaji Moctar Musa Bamba won easily, amassing a huge 3,428 votes, with John Boadu coming second with a meager 448 votes, followed by Isaac E. Edumadze, 75 votes.
The National Treasurer position went to Esther Dzifah Ofori, who was unopposed following Kofi Osei-Ameyaw's late withdrawal from the race.
Anthony A. Karbo emerged winner in the National Youth Organizer contest, polling 273 votes, followed by Stephen Amoah, 192, Pius Enam Hadzide, 145 and Michael Kwabena Ampong, who polled the smallest number of votes in the entire elections with 15 votes.
In the keenly-contested National Women's Organizer race, Otiko Afisah Djaba beat her only competitor, Christine Churcher with 20 votes, polling 280 as against the latter's 260.
Abubakar Sulleymana, popularly called 'Lakulaku', also emerged the Nasara Club Coordinator, amassing 130 votes to beat Mohamed Amin with 50 votes, and Alhaji Tanko, 47 votes.
As if by design, one significant aspect of the elections which could go a long way to deepen the party's peace and unity, needed for victory in 2012, was that almost all the 10 regions of the country were represented in the NPP national executive.
The programme, which started as early as 6:00am, was organized under tight security, as armed police and army personnel made sure that everyone acted in line with the laid-down rules, with every single accreditation badge being inspected.
The police also acted professionally and were very polite most of the time, while ensuring peace and order.
The programme was climaxed with singing and dancing of party tunes as the tartan tracks area of the stadium was covered with the red, blue and white colours of the NPP by the over-joyous party supporters, some of whom danced till about 3:00am before leaving the venue for their various destinations.
From I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr, Morgan Owusu & Ernest Kofi Adu, Kumasi