"I've No Candidate of My Choice" - Kufuor Warns

Chronicle intelligence has laid hands on a document from the office of the President at the Castle, warning all Parliamentary aspirants of the NPP not to use the President's name to boost their campaign and political image.

The document dated April 23 and signed by the Special Assistant at the Office of the President, Mr. Kwasi Ankama on behalf of the chief of Staff read as follows; "it comes to the attention of this office (President Office) that some NPP aspiring Parliamentary candidates are going round the various constituencies, using H.E., the President's name to boost their campaign and political image."

The said document addressed to the General Secretary of the party, Mr. Daniel Botwe and copied to the Majority leader in Parliament, stated that the President, Mr. J.A. Kufuor had no intention of supporting any candidate over and above the other.

The President, according to the letter, emphasized that Mr. Kufuor had not directed the national executive of the party to declare any particular aspirant as unopposed, as was being peddled at the constituencies.

The document cautioned that any candidate found misusing the name of the President for his or her political ambition should be made to face the full rigours of rules and regulations laid down by the NPP.

Meanwhile, an aspiring Member of Parliament for Sunyani East, Nana Obiri Boahen, in an interview with The Chronicle urged both the regional and national executive of the party to live above any suspicion of backing particular candidate(s).

According to Nana Boahen, also a legal practitioner based in Sunyani, any aspirant who would emerge as a winner at the primaries was in the interest of the party.

He therefore prayed that the primaries of the NPP be conducted in a brotherly manner to ensure victory for the party in the December 7 polls.

On the party's decision to sack any member of the party contesting as independent candidate, Nana suggested that the leadership should rather look into why such a candidate was going solo than passing uncomplimentary remarks on such persons.

Nana emphasized that the party had brighter prospects in this year's election and what was needed for the party to do was to do away with all that would make it unpopular before the electorate.

In a related development, information reaching The Chronicle's Brong Ahafo Bureau indicated that some aspirants of the NPP for Sunyani East living in Accra were inviting the polling station chairmen to Accra to bribe them to vote for them.

But the regional chairman of the party, Mr. Kwadwo Yeboah Fordjour has denied the allegation on the Space FM programme, Focal Point.

The chairman said he had no knowledge of such a deal and for that matter, could not explain anything regarding the issue.