It was just feeding fee - Asiedu Nketiah on monies given to delegates of NDC Congress

Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, a National Chairman hopeful of the National Democratic has denied knowledge of any vote-buying scheme in the party’s 10th National Delegates Congress.

Reports have been rife that delegates of the party were offered money at their respective lodging places before going to the Accra Sports Stadium to cast their votes.

But Asiedu Nketiah, in a Metro TV interview said that the monies handed to the delegates were not to influence their choice of votes.

The outgoing General Secretary of the NDC said that the party, aware of the current financial status decided not to provide feeding for the over 9000 delegates.

He revealed that there was an agreement that if any candidate found it prudent to feed the delegates, he or she had the backing of the party to do that.

Asiedu Nketiah states that the monies which given to the candidates were supposed to facilitate their feeding.

“We are in opposition and we took opposition that there will be no feeding, at this Congress. It was therefore up to candidates to support them with feeding and other things. Providing some support for feeding is not a bad thing but when you actually promise people to vote in a certain manner and promise to pay them, that direct buying of votes.

“Former president had to contribute a lot in footing some of the bills so it wasn’t possible as a party we had resources to feed so if candidates are allowed to raise their own funds and contribute towards the feeding and other expenses and it is done in a transparent manner, I don’t see that to be vote buying.