NDC elects Jamal as its Akwatia candidate

Akwatia(E/R), Dec. 14, GNA - A Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Baba Jamal was on Friday unanimously elected the party's candidate to contest the Akwatia Constituency seat in next year's Parliamentary elections.

He was the sole candidate at the party's primaries.

Baba lost in 2000 to the candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr K.A. Kissi.

Baba who was later introduced at a rally by the party's National Chairman, Dr Obed Asamoah vowed to wrestle the seat from the NPP.

Dr Asamoah said the NDC would return to power in 2004 because the NPP had failed Ghanaians by not fulfilling its election promises.

He said the NPP won the 2000 elections through "sweet talk, deception and fraud by false pretences" and through mistakes by the NDC leadership itself for instance not holding primaries to elect parliamentary candidates.

The National Chairman called on party members and supporters to ensure that they registered massively when the voters' register was opened for fresh registration.

Dr Asamoah also asked them to campaign effectively, explaining why it would be bad for the nation and themselves if they should return the Kufuor administration to power to worsen their already deplorable condition.

The party's National Organiser and Member of Parliament for Fanteakwa, Mr Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo said the NDC would not be intimidated by arrests of its members and that they would continue to speak out since the NPP was bringing hopelessness to the people and destroying the future of the country.

He said the NPP had not planned any new projects and what they were implementing now, like the Urban V project at Akwatia, were planned by the NDC.

Mr Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, NDC MP for Wenchi West contended that President Kufuor's "zero tolerance for corruption" was a ruse since corruption was on the rise and the President was doing nothing about it especially if it involved his own party people.

He said the sword to fight corruption should be double-edged and deal with whoever is guilty, irrespective of political party affiliation.