Akufo-Addo to face Mahama in 2016 - Survey

A survey of New Patriotic Party’s newly elected polling and constituency elections shows that Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is certain to clinch the NPP’s 2016 presidential ticket.

With the ticket virtually in his pocket, Nana is sure to face John Dramani Mahama, the President and the National Democratic Congress’ most likely candidate for 2016, for the third time in a national presidential contest.

Interviews with NPP new executives in six regions – Western, Central, Ashanti, Greater Accra, Volta and Brong Ahafo – show that Nana Addo is the overwhelming favourite of those who will constitute the NPP presidential electorate college this year.

In the Greater Accra Region, over 80% of newly elected polling and constituency executives interviewed said they will vote for Nana Addo if the NPP presidential primaries were held today.

At the Kpone-Katamanso Constituency, for instance, all the newly elected executives said they were all supporters of Nana Addo.

One executive member, apparently overexcited at the results of constituency elections, told The Finder that the new executives and delegates were ready to go naked if that was the requirement for Nana to contest in the party's presidential primaries.

During the elections itself, so many of the party delegates wore t-shirts with images of Nana Addo on them.

In Ashaiman and Tema East, Central and West constituencies, the story was no different as over 90% of the newly elected executives and sitting Members of Parliament (MPs) for Tema East, Central and West are all ardent supporters of Nana Akufo-Addo.

Albeit the fresh executives of the party in the four constituencies remain tight-lipped, the delegates told The Finder that they will go for Nana Addo at any time because he is more marketable.

Some of the executives confided to The Finder that they have been on private campaigns for regional and national candidates who support Nana Addo.

Asked about the possible entrance of Mr Alan Kyeremanten in the presidential primaries, a retained constituency chairman said, "We don't know Alan: it is Nana Addo we know."

Party delegates and newly elected executives in the Greater Accra Region also expressed similar sentiments to The Finder reporters.

Our correspondent for Western and Central regions also computed from interviews held with party delegates and newly elected executives that Nana Addo’s supporters also cruised through last year’s polling station elections and this month’s constituency elections.

Majority of the contestants who were successful in the elections did so due to their allegiance to Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

Speaking to The Finder on developments preceding the contest and the outcome, one of the constituency women’s organisers who successfully retained her position in the contest felt that all those who identified themselves with the camp of Nana Addo won their positions.

She said: “Those party members who were seen as supporters of Mr Alan Kyeremanten could not come out openly to campaign. One could not also use his name or the Alan brand, because it was more than a taboo to do that.”

According to our correspondent in the Western Region, unlike the two previous contests between Nana Addo and Mr Kyeremanten, this contest is not competitive.

“Their victory was obvious,” a party member said in reference to the Nana Addo group.

In constituencies where a few supporters of Mr Kyeremanteng succeeded in being elected, they still found themselves in the minority: it was either three or four slots out of the nine elective positions.

“Nana deserves another chance; therefore all those against his candidature must be preparing the dooms ground for the NPP. We are not going to gamble with another candidate, because we think that he has been marketed enough,” a member of the NPP communication team in the Western Region who preferred anonymity said.

“Nana Addo has already won,” The Finder correspondents in the Ashanti, Volta and Northern regions also came to this conclusion after speaking to NPP delegates and newly elected party executives after the polling and constituency level election.