NDC MP Punches Fiifi Kwetey Over Ketu South NDC Seat

y Gifty Arthur

The battle as to who becomes the Member of Parliament for Ketu South in the Volta Region, on the ticket of the ruling party, is shaping up to look like legendary Mohammed Ali’s boxing bout with Joe Frazier dubbed “Thriller in Manila”.

In the blue corner is Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Fiifi Fiavi Kwetey while the red corner has the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP), Albert Kwesi Zigah, boasting that he is not intimidated by Mr. Kwetey by his actions in the constituency to unseat him.

The MP was reacting to a communiqué issued by a group calling itself ‘Friends of Hon. Fiifi Fiavi Kwetey’, who have expressed disgust about a petition presented the MP to the headquarters of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) on the conduct of some deputy ministers and a member of the national executive who is said to be working day and night for Mr. Kwetey to unseat him the (MP).

Mr. Zigah’s petition is said to have mentioned the ministers working for Mr. Kwetey as the Deputy Minister for Information, Samuel Okudjato Ablakwa, Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Elvis Afriyie Ankrah and the National Youth Organizer of the party, Mr. Ludwig Akpene Hlordzie.

A communiqué signed and sent to The Herald by one Lord-Chester Ben Ati and headed ‘Fear grips Albert Kwesi Zigah over Hon. Fiifi Kwetey’, said, among other things, that the action by the MP to petition the party was unfortunate and disappointing, adding that the petition lacked substance and veracity.

When reached on phone for his reaction to the communiqué, Mr. Zigah told The Herald that he was not prepared to make details of his petition public until he hears from the leadership of the party, adding that the deputy minister could go ahead and do his worse because he (Fiifi) knows very well that he not beat him (MP) at the contest.

Mr. Zigah explained to The Herald that he has trust in his party leadership to give the appropriate response, hence won’t rush to the media.

He, however, believes that there are many able and better contenders in the constituency who are equally capable like him, (the MP) and so do not see the Deputy Minister as a match. The MP urged the so-called group to continue their agenda of campaigning for Mr. Kwetey.

According to the group, on April 22 this year, the above mentioned three deputy ministers, together with Mr. Hlordzie, were invited to a programme organized by the ‘Concerned Youth Organization at Denu on a capacity-building seminar dubbed “National Transformation–The role of the Youth of the 21st Century”.

On the same platform, the group said that the MP was also invited to the ceremony, but he decline to attend, with the excuse that he had other engagements on the said date. In the course of the meeting, the group said that they spotted the MP at the venue in an unofficial vehicle, but did not take part in the programme.

The group also denied the claim by the MP that the coming of the government officials to the constituency was to take advantage of the seminar to campaign for Mr. Kwetey.