Derry To Turn Down Veep Position?

Information trickling in from the camp of Hon. Ambrose Derry suggests that the Lawra/Nandom MP is not keen on becoming the running mate of Nana Akufo-Addo. According to sources who work closely with the Parliamentarian’s Special Assistant, Pascal Derry, though the former Upper East Regional Minister and Deputy Attorney General is very confident of a Nana Addo victory in the 2012 elections, he is of the opinion that he will be in a better position to serve the Party if he decides to consolidate the Lawra/Nandom parliamentary seat which until 2008 was occupied by the NDC representative, Dr. Benjamin Kunbuor.

It will be recalled that in 2008, Hon. Ambrose Derry wrestled the Lawra/Nandom seat from NDC’s incumbent, Hon. Benjamin Kunbuor by a slim margin of about 3%. Political pundits attributed the victory of Hon. Derry to the role of DFP’s Bede Ziedeng, who was able to scrape off some 1000 and more votes from the NDC. However with the assimilation of the DFP by the NDC, it is unlikely that Bede will play that decisive role again, leaving the stage to be set for a fierce contest between Mr. Ambrose Derry and Hon. Benjamin Kunbuor. The political loyalists of Hon. Ambrose Derry say that whilst the Lawra Nandom MP finds it gratifying that his name is being considered as a possible running mate to Nana Addo, he also recognizes that for Nana Addo to be able to successfully implement his many laudable policies, he will require the backing of parliament which if is dominated by his political party, will only make things better not just for the President but the whole country. According to the source Hon. Derry believes that as the incumbent Member of Parliament for Lawra/Nandom, and having gained the trust and confidence of his constituents, he stands a better chance, far better than anyone the NPP will present, to defeat no less a person than Dr. Benjamin Kunbuor, who is currently the Minister in charge of Internal Security.

Contacts made by this writer in the Lawra/Nandom constituency also suggest that the people are unhappy with the MPs keenness to abandon them so soon for another slot. Some of the people this writer interviewed expressed their satisfaction with the performance of Hon. Ambrose Derry since he became their MP, and have urged him not to abandon their fate to a member of President Mill’s “Team B”; a call which according to the Derry strategists, the MP cannot ignore.

The Derry confidants also identified religious diversity as another reason why their leader does not wish to be Nana’s running mate. According to them, Hon Derry recognizes that one needs to secure the mandate of the people before translating your ideas into policies, so since politics is all about numbers, he will prefer that Nana nominates a person who is not only economically competent, but who will also be representative of the religious and cultural diversity of the country.

Subtly suggesting that Hon. Ambrose Derry is rooting for Dr. Bawumiah, the Hon. MP’s loyalists called on the people of Lawra/Nandom to rally behind their MP, Hon. Ambrose Derry to win the seat for a second time, and to support Nana Akufo-Addo and whoever he chooses as his running mate, as their fortune in this world, is tied to the victory of the NPP in 2012.

With the stage set for Nana Addo Dankwah Akufo-Addo to name his running mate before the end of the year, all eyes are pointing to Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia who exhibited not only genuine confidence, but also seriousness when he resigned from his position at the African Development Bank to partner Nana in the 2012 Presidential elections.

BY: AHMED SEIDU

Ahmedseidu2012@yahoo.com