Vote For Me — Osafo-Maafo

A presidential aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, has stressed the need for the party's delegates to Saturday's National Delegates Congress to vote massively for him, since he is the most competent and marketable among the aspirants.

“Vote for me to promote, protect and preserve the NPP because I am a unifier and an inspirer who can unite the party after the December 22, 2007 Congress,” he said.

Mr Osafo-Maafo made the call when he addressed the 240 NPP delegates from the 24 constituencies in the Brong Ahafo Region at separate meetings in Sunyani and Techiman at the last lap of his campaign tour of the region.

He said after successfully going through a hectic vetting, nothing could stop him from winning the presidential race in the 2008 general election if he was given the nod as the NPP presidential candidate on Saturday.

Mr Osafo-Maafo, whose powerful and inspiring speech endeared him to the delegates, urged them to pray ceaselessly for God's intervention, since they would be performing both physical and spiritual functions during Saturday's election.

He said even though he was optimistic of winning the election on Saturday, should the unfortunate thing happen and someone else emerges victorious, he would support the person.

According to him, he was not scared of the way some presidential aspirants were influencing the delegates with huge sums of money.

He, however, advised the delegates to collect the money, but vote for the aspirant with a track record of achievements who could win the general election for the NPP come 2008.

Mr Osafo-Maafo cautioned the delegates, and the other presidential aspirants and their supporters not to do anything that had the potential of dividing the NPP after the December 22, 2007 congress, since that negative attitude could affect the fortunes of the party.

He said the NDC could never win any genuine election in Ghana if there was no break in the NPP. Mr Osafo-Maafo stressed that his number one spot on the ballot was not by chance, but was destined by God to occupy the same position in Saturday's election to lead Ghana to prosperity.

A member of his campaign team, Mr M.K. Antwi, who is the MP for Atwima Kwanwoma, traced Mr Osafo-Maafo's track record of revamping the shattered economy, taking Ghana to HIPC and out of it, leading the Black Stars to its historic qualification of the World Cup in Germany, among other significant achievements, and urged the delegates to vote for him on Saturday to continue his good work.

Other members of Mr Osafo-Maafo's campaign team included Mr Kwasi Owusu-Yeboah, former Volta Regional Minister, Mr Prince Aboagye and Mr Osei Frimpong.

Story by Samuel Kyei-Boateng