Concern Kwadaso NPP youth angry with Agric Minister over polling station elections

Concern Kwadaso youth, an NPP group from the Kwadaso Constituency, are irate at the former Member of Parliament (MP), Dr, Owusu Afriyie Akoto now Minister of Food and Agriculture, for allegedly stifling processes to organize the polling station elections in the constituency.

According to them, the Minister’s supposed act of slowing the process was in a bid to prevent the current Kwadaso MP, Dr. Samiu Kwadwo Nuamah, from executing his policies for the electorate.

In a statement they said “Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, (Now the Agric Minister and self-acclaimed vice president) who lost the primaries to Dr. Samiu Kwadwo Nuamah (MP Kwadaso) has adopted various means to undermine and denigrate the humble and affable leader of the constituency from achieving his envisaged plans and programmes for constituents.”

The group, therefore, cautioned the “de facto vice president” to brace himself for their wrath if he and his cohorts fail to come up with any meaningful explanation for the feet dragging concerning the Kwadaso Polling Station elections.

Special Assistant to the Food and Agriculture Minister, Mr. Frank Amoako, has in a rebuttal to the above claims made by the Concern Kwadaso group, said he is horrified and saddened by the accusations.

He stated in a release that the allegations leveled against the former MP were “unfounded, unwarranted, false, infantile, mischievous and baseless and hence must be thrown into the garbage.”

Mr Amoako, who doubles as Kwadaso Constituency Organizer, described Dr Akoto as someone who discharged his responsibilities tremendously across the nation during the presidential and parliamentary general Elections in December, 2016.

He included that the he (Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto) provided support in terms of cash to all the 47 Constituencies through organizers in the Ashanti region including Kwadaso and other parts of the country especially the 3 northern regions.

Thus he sees no reason why the group are on his neck for non-performance and boycotting the elections to which he hinted that “we will fight to maintain the destiny, our welfare and the dignity of Kwadaso Constituency.”

Below is the full press statement

FOR IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

RE: Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto (Agric Minister) not behind the cancellation of Kwadaso Polling Station Elections

Press conference organized by Mr. Frank Amoako, Special Assistant to the Honourable Minister of Food and Agriculture, Hon. Dr. OwusuAfriyie on 27th January, 2018.

Invited Media houses, prints and electronics, invited guests, N.P.P fraternity, party faithfuls, electorates and delegates, party sympathizers, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I would like to express my profound appreciation to you all for honoring this invitation at this short notice. It has come to my attention the series of allegations leveled against the Hon. Minister of Food and Agriculture, a group that call themselves as Concern Electorates in Kwadaso Constituency.

Among these frivolous allegations are;

• That the Hon. Minister of Food and Agriculture is

1. Self – acclaimed vice president

2. De facto chief of staff

• Instructed the regional representatives of the 5Electoral Member Committee to change the declared album

• Has not assisted or campaign for the party during 2016 general Elections.

Ladies and Gentlemen, all the listed allegations against the Hon. Minister are unfounded, unwarranted, false, infantile, mischievous and baseless and hence must be thrown into the gutter.

The Hon. Minister of Food and Agriculture, Hon. Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the immediate past Member of Parliament in Kwadaso Constituency discharged his arduous and tremendous responsibilities across the nation during the presidential and parliamentary general Elections in December, 2016. He provided support in terms of cash to all the 47 Constituencies through organizers in the Ashanti region including Kwadaso and other parts of the country especially the 3 northern regions.

Press of the media, there is no cogent prove that deals with facts of the allegations to start with. It lacks merit on arrival. There is a saying that, “he who alleges must prove”.

Looking at the broad spectrum of the allegations, the group thought this could divert attention on the fictitious and demonic dealings of the Electoral processes going on in the Constituency, they have failed.

The Hon. Minister is grateful to the people of Ghana and Agriculture Ministry that, through government flagship programme ‘Planting for Food and Jobs’, the ministry has, for the first time, created 745,000 jobs for the teeming youth of this country and has succeeded in yielding high productivity through his leadership.

The substantive issue, Ladies and Gentlemen, on 9th January, 2018, our party Acting General Secretary through memorandum of understanding from the National Executive Council meeting held on 8th January, 2018 gave directives on the Constituency Electoral processes to all Constituencies across the country, starting from polling station, executive, Electoral process and Elections.

On the 16th January, 2018, all the aspiring candidates who picked the polling station forms were asked to submit their forms. After collection of the form at the N.P.P Constituency office, the Constituency chairman instructed that the forms be kept in one of the inner rooms in the absence of the regional representatives.

I, the Constituency organizer and others prevented them until the arrival of the regional representatives. At about 4:30 pm, the Member of Parliament, Hon. Dr. Samiu K. Nuamah’s driver and the Body Guard and five body builders (macho men) surrounded me, assaulted and threatened to kill me. The question is who sent them or who was behind it? As I speak, the case is in the hands of the Sofoline Police Command.

During vetting processes of the Electoral Area Coordinators, on 25th January, 2018 some of the candidates noticed that the album that had been prepared to be used for the Elections was full of errors. This was because most of the aspirant who had contested various positions and had won had their names deleted with new entrants. However, the constituency Chairman and the Member of Parliament had earlier on warned that they would replace the old Executives with new ones and that raised an alarm in most of the constituents.

Fellow invited guests and media present, individual delegates and aspirants petitioned the N.P.P regional executive committee on 26th January, 2018, the Conflict Resolution Committee under its chair, Mr. Frederick Freduah Anto, the 1st National Vice Chairman of our party invited the two factions to look into the matter, he then suspended Kwadaso Constituency Electoral area coordinator Elections which was to take place on Sunday, 28th February, 2018 indefinitely.

Fellow aspirants and constituents, let us not be intimidated by any miscreants, let us all resist any attempt that would mal the process, resist the oppressors rule and fight for our legitimate right and welfare.

Our destiny is pre-patterned and pre-determined by God that whatsoever good thing that we will do shall surely come through. We will fight to maintain the destiny, our welfare and the dignity of Kwadaso Constituency.

Thank You

Frank Amoako

(Constituency Organizer)

Special Assistant to the Hon. Minister of Food and Agriculture

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