Atiwa by-election: NPP chairman unhappy despite party's win

Mr Jake Obetsebi Lamptey

New Patriotic Party Chairman, Jake Obetsebi Lamptey, says despite the party's candidate winning the Atiwa by-election, he is saddened by the amount of violence which characterized the process.

Mr Obetsebi-Lamtey laments reports suggesting that “where there was trouble, the police were standing by and watching.”

The voting to replace former Member of Parliament, Kwasi Annoh-Ankamah, who died in July this year, was ruled out as a straight victory for an NPP candidate although speculations were also rife that vigorous campaigning by the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) could uptick the party's performance in the constituency.

The NPP chairman is worried that although a victory for the NPP was not in doubt there were attempts by the party's detractors to frustrate the process.

“We've been averaging over 60 [plus] percent of the votes in this constituency since the 1996 election so it will take a tremendously huge swing – difficult, very, very difficult to achieve – to unseat an NPP candidate in this constituency.

“Therefore, you wonder why on earth there was a need to bring the violence in. Why was there a need to import such [violence] into a situation like this? It demeans the whole of our democracy and it's not good for Ghana,” Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey told Joy News' Benard Saibu on Tuesday.

Seven people were reportedly injured when the sports utility vehicle being driven by Deputy Eastern Regional Minister Baba Jamal and the NDC's National Women's Organizer Anita De-Souza, plowed through a crowd, injuring seven youth activists.

Three of the activists are said to have been seriously injured.

Mr Obetsebi Lamptey however hailed the "very high degree of professionalism" with which the Electoral Commission (EC) conducted the by-election.

The New Patriotic Party's Kwasi Amoako-Atta polled 20,282 or 75 percent of valid votes to win the election while Emmanuel Atta Twum of the NDC obtained 6,190 or 22.89% of the votes to place second.

The New Vision Party's George Apraku Padmore secured 477 or 1.76% votes while Kasum Abdul-Karim of the People's National Convention came at the tail of the pack with 94 or 0.35% of votes.

Popularity test
The Atiwa by-election was considered by political pundits as the biggest test yet of the popularity of President John Evans Atta Mills.

In the last election, the NPP's Kwasi Annoh Ankamah bagged 26,423 or 76.49 percent of valid votes cast to win the Parliamentary seat trailed by the Mr Atta Twum whole polled 7,851 or 22.71 percent.

While the NDC moved up by a marginal 0.18 percent from the 22.71 percent it obtained in the last parliamentary election, 22.89 percent, the NPP recorded 1.49 percent in depreciation.

In the presidential election in 2008, the NPP's Nana Akufo-Addo obtained 79.14 percent while John Evans Atta Mills of the NDC polled 20.86 percent of valid votes cast.

Story by Fiifi Koomson/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana