Ricketts-Hagan Joins NDC Flagbearer Race

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Cape Coast South constituency, Kweku Ricketts-Hagan has declared his intention to contest as a flagbearer of the party.

In a letter addressed to the General Secretary of the Party, he said he was ready to share his message based on the party's principles to enable it to have a realistic chance of reclaiming political power in 2020.

Explaining why believes he is the best candidate to lead the party into the 2020 polls, Ricketts-Hagan said, he thinks he represents the new vision and ideas the party needs going into the next presidential elections.

“We went into an election in 2016 which we lost. When you go into any battle, and you lose, you have to come back to the drawing board to strengthen yourself and forge ahead with new ideas and new vision and I that is what I believe I will be able to offer my dear NDC party going forward, that is the reason why I am putting my hat in this race.”

He said it was unfair for him or any individual to be blamed for the party's abysmal performing in the last parliamentary election especially in the Central Region, noting that he still the solution to some of the challenges that resulted in the poor results.

“I can fix some of the problems that the Dr. Kwesi Botchwey report has highlighted that went wrong why we lost the [2016] elections. You cannot blame the losing of the election on me or any single person in the party,” he told Umaru Sanda on Eyewitness News on Friday.

Kweku Ricketts-Hagan has since pledged to run a “decent campaign devoid of any negatives” and abide by the party's rules in the conduct of presidential primaries.

Read this letter below:

It is with great humility that I write to official confirm that I will be a candidate in the upcoming NDC flagbearership race to elect a presidential candidate for the election of 2020.

May I take the opportunity to sincerely thank the entire National Executive Committee (NEC) for declaring the campaigning of this race officially opened. With your permission, I will proceed to official launch my campaign to enable me to take my case, to our people across the length and breadth of our country. As I go round, I hope to share a new vision, a new start and a new direction anchored on our principles and values of accountability, probity, social justice and transparency that will give us a realisitic chance of winning back power in 2020.

I am of a firm believe that the NDC party, if well strengthened and reinvigorated to reflect the modern aspiration of our people, it will continue to remain relevant to Ghanaians because it is naturally the only political party in Ghana that can genuinely develop the resources nature has endowered us with, sustainably by making use of full mobilization of talents and energies of all our people to get us out of poverty, improves the living conditions of our people and hold a better prospect for our future.

Senior Comrade, I am by this letter also assuring NEC and the entire party that I would conduct a decent campaign devoid of any negatives and abide by the NDC's rules of engagement in conducting presidential primaries.

God bless our great NDC party.
Yours sincerely,
Hon. George Kweku Rickets-Hagan, MP

NDC presidential race
So far, former Trade Minister, Spio Garbrah; MP for Nadowli-Kaleo, Alban Bagbin; former NHIS boss, Sylvester Mensah; Mr. Stephen Atubiga and former Vice Chancellor of the University for Professional Studies, Prof. Joshua Alabi, have so far given indications they will contest for NDC's presidential candidate position.

Former President, John Dramani Mahama is however tightlipped over his presidential ambitions with an excuse that he wants to focus on the party's restructuring and healing process to make the NDC a stronger force in the elections 2020.

94 NDC MPs endorse Mahama
Ahead of the party's presidential election, 94 NDC Members of Parliament out of 106 have reportedly endorsed John Dramani Mahama to lead the party in the 2020 elections.

According to the leader of the 94 MPs, Edwin Nii Lantey Vandapuye, John Mahama is the only candidate who can lead the party to victory in the next polls.

“I can tell you that we have 94 MPs who have faithfully and critically endorsed our former President, John Mahama, to be the candidate once again. This excludes our leaders. The grassroots of this country, the majority of Ghanaians are crying for John Dramani Mahama and as such it will be wicked on our part not to listen to the plea and cries of Ghanaians by giving them who they prefer. So we are bringing back John Dramani Mahama and we are very sure in our minds that Ghanaians will this time accept him and overwhelmingly vote for him to become the next president in Ghana in 2021,” he added.