NPP suspends opening of nominations for parliamentary primaries

The leadership of the opposition New Patriotic Party has suspended the opening of nominations for prospective parliamentary candidates in the 2016 election. The party was to open nominations from Monday March 30 to April 10, while the election was to be held on May 24.

The suspension, according to reports, is to allow the party's highest decision-making body the National Council time, to deliberate on some controversial policies proposed for the parliamentary primaries. The party's National Council took the decision on Monday in a meeting that has been rescheduled for Wednesday April 1.

A member of the National Council, Dr. Kwame Amoako Tuffour told Accra-based Citi FM that the party decided to review the new directives because of the controversy it sparked.

“The National Executive Committee had a meeting and what they deliberated upon sparked controversy outside, some for,some against. It appeared most people were against the decision so it becomes important that you call the higher body to sit on it and give its final word.”

According to him,the Council will discuss the merits and demerits of the new directives and will vote on each of them. He said NEC will review the directives if the polls indicate that most of the party members believe they are not favorable.

The party's National Executive Committee, NEC among others, took a decision to bar males from contesting against the party's female incumbent MPs, an affirmative action that seeks to improve women's participation in Parliament.

But the move has faced strong opposition with angry party supporters from across the country describing it as undemocratic. Others have also condemned the NEC's decision to reserve some twelve seats in the Greater Accra Region specifically for only Ga indigenes.

Agitated members have thus protested in some parts of the country to register their displeasure.

Although some leading party members have endorsed the move, political analysts have cautioned that the affirmative action move could affect the party's chances in the 2016 elections.

They have noted that although the idea to improve women's' participation in politics is laudable, the approach being used by the party is inappropriate. They have proposed the party uses dialogue instead of making it compulsory through directives.

The various disagreements that greeted the proposals has brought to the fore the need for a review hence the national council meeting to consider the proposals.