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23.08.2004 NPP

Upper West NPP Chairman gives reasons for his action

23.08.2004 LISTEN
By GNA

Wa, Aug. 23, GNA - Alhaji Abdulai Issahaque, Upper West Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), on Saturday said he decided to reopen nominations for prospective parliamentary candidates in the Wa Central Constituency in order to give opportunity to all loyal Party members to contest the primary.

According to him, this action was necessitated by the carving out of Wa West Constituency from the Wa Central Constituency in the recent demarcations carried out by the Electoral Commission (EC). He said as a result of the creation of the new constituency, some villages such as Busa, Kperisi, Sing, Boli, Guli and Tamna, which were formally in the Wa East now formed part of Wa Central Constituency after the demarcation.

Alhaji Issahaque was reacting to a statement by the General Secretary of the Party, Mr Dan Botwe to the effect that Mr Clement Eledi, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture, was the sole candidate for the constituency after the close of nominations last year.

The Regional Chairman accused Mr Botwe of allegedly circumventing a decision taken by the National Executive Committee to open nominations for Wa Central, Sissala West and Sissala East constituencies. He said the Constituency Chairman, who opposed the re-opening of nominations in Wa Central at a news conference at Wa last Thursday, was "stabbing the constituency in the back," because he was allegedly the architect of their action.

Meanwhile, records available at the National Electoral Commission showed that Ga, Nyoli, Naaha, Poyentanga, Sonuori and Domangili are all villages, which were demarcated from the Wa East Constituency to form part of Wa West, where Major Edward Yirimanbo (Rtd) had been declared unopposed by the Regional Executive without opening nominations. Last Wednesday, the Regional Chairman caused an announcement to be made at the two local FM stations re-opening nominations in the Wa Central Constituency without the approval of the National Executive Committee.

The General Secretary responded to this development by reminding the Regional Chairman and his supporters that the NEC of the Party knew only Mr Eledi as the sole candidate at the close of nominations last year and that decision was irrevocable.

When the Party opened nominations last year, only Mr Eledi and Major Yirimanbo, who hailed from the new Constituency filed their nominations but Major Yirimanbo moved there and was acclaimed as the sole candidate without opening nominations.

Instead of acclaiming Mr Eledi, who hails from Wa Central, as the sole candidate, the Regional Chairman and his supporters are calling for fresh nominations to be opened. 23 Aug. 04

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