Conduct parliamentary primaries at the electoral areas – STUNNAD urges NPP

The Students Network for Nana Akufo-Addo (STUNNAD) has urged the leadership of the New Patriotic Party to consider decentralizing the upcoming parliamentary primaries.

The group argues that holding the primaries at the electoral centres instead of everyone converging at one centre in a constituency will save cost.

“It will be cost effective to hire two EC officers at every electoral area for just about an hour than to converge, transport and hire PA system, security, etc to hold the exercise at one centre in the constituency,” STUNNAD said in a statement signed by its National President, Chris Arthur backed by regional executives.

Aside being another way of making good use of time, the statement suggested that the method will reduce the acrimony and tension trying to characterise the primaries.

“The sterling performance of the Akufo-Addo-led government, has made the ground fertile for persons going to stand on the ticket of the NPP to enter parliament with little effort. Regrettably, instead of we taking advantage of this, some functionaries within the NPP want to implore foul means to achieve their parochial interest to the detriment of the party. Intelligence gathered suggest these people are willing to throw caution to wind and cause confusion at their constituency centres if primaries do not go their way,” the statement explained.

“We are in government now so we should not give the little chance for evil minded people to plunge our party into another confusion. We are very much aware of the tension at various constituencies across the country.

“Some candidates are planning to cause troubles in some constituencies to tarnish the image of the party since it has become obvious that they have been rejected ahead of the exercise. We must prevent them in a smart way. The election would be done within an hour at the various electoral areas. There is no need to converge at one place and transport delegates to a center and feed them.”

STUNNAD recalled that in 2015 the NPP adopted this method for the presidential primary and it was proven that holding the exercise at the constituency level instead of converging at one venue was “rather effective and much more successful”.

“It was very successful and peaceful. It saves a lot of money. Let the various electoral areas meet at their usual meeting places and chose their parliamentary candidates. The EC can be paid for just an hour to conduct the election with the help of our electoral area coordinators to save cost, time, logistics and ensure improved security”.

STUNNAD was formed in 2013 at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi by students and graduates across the country who believe in the ideas and principles of Nana Akufo-Addo. STUNNAD became a very vibrant pressure group within the NPP during the primaries of its flag bearers in 2014 till the victory of NPP in 2016. The group is remembered of its intense “fights” for pro-Akufo-Addo interest during the internal struggle that led to the suspension of Mr. Paul Afoko, Kwabena Agyapong and Sammy Crabbe from their respective positions, which many argued but for the suspensions of these key national executives the NPP couldn’t have won the 2016 elections.