Nana Addo/Oboshie Sai Cofie Ticket Is The Best - Ephson

Renowned Pollster and Managing Editor of the Daily Dispatch Newspaper, Ben Ephson Jnr., believes the choice of who partners Nana Akufo Addo, presidential candidate for the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) in Election 2012, should be someone the flagbearer feels comfortable with and would garner votes for the party.

In this regard, he is warning against an Akufo-Addo/Alan Kyeremanten ticket saying it will lead to disaster.

Mr. Ephson rather asserts that though a repeat dose of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia as Nana Addo’s running mate again would not be a bad decision, Oboshie Sai Cofie would be a better candidate because she would appeal to the people of Ga.

The February 2011 issue of the Economist Intelligence (EIU) analysis on Ghana has suggested that as a measure to ensure unity in the opposition New Patriotic Party towards the 2012 elections, its flagbearer, Nana Akufo Addo, should pick Alan Kwadwo Kyeremanten as his running mate for 2012.

The analysis stated that if President John Mills is selected as the presidential candidate for the ruling National Democratic Congress for 2012, it will be a repeat of the 2008 presidential elections.

It added, “it will be important to unify the party behind Nana Akufo Addo, who has a long running rivalry with Alan Kyeremanten. Any public bickering between the two factions will probably cost the party, support. However, were they to be able to work together, perhaps with Mr Kyeremanten as Nana Addo’s running mate, they would provide a stern test for the NDC.”

However, the Daily Dispatch Managing Editor sharply disagrees.

Speaking on the Big Bite show on Xfm 95.1, Mr. Ephson dismissed the analysis of the EIU and argued that “Alan as Nana’s running mate would not fly”.

Quoting excerpts from his book, the political analyst opined that should Akufo-Addo pick Alan as his running mate, the electorate will be forced into thinking that he did so out of convenience and further underpin the perception that the NPP is an Akan Party.

“Nana Addo is an Akyem from the Eastern Region while Alan Kyeremanten is from both the Central and Ashanti Regions. Then why are there reports that Nana Akufo Addo is considering Mr. Kyeremanten as a running mate for 2012? If he is elected as the NPP running mate, has Alan Kyeremanten’s ethnic groupings changed since 2008?...In 2008, if Nana Addo had chosen Alan, I believe he would have performed better because the strength of John Mahama as running mate to President Mills was to appeal to floating voters. This is what Alan had. Now Nana Addo’s argument is also logical; so now if Nana should go and pick Alan, the question is, has his ethnic groupings changed? People would think it is just for convenience,” Ben Ephson said.

Asked who in his opinion would be a perfect running mate for Nana Addo, Ben Epson simply stated; “the person he feels most comfortable with and the person who would add some more votes to the NPP” and quickly named Oboshie Sai Cofie as a better choice.

“During the NPP era, the people of Ga were not treated well in terms of importance, etc. But I think the strength Oboshie Sai Cofie has, is her ethnic background; not as a woman, because Ghanaian women do not vote for women first. From work we have done, it was clear that quite a number of the Ga’s were happy that ‘agbene, wo ho wobaaya castle’ to wit, ‘now, we also would be going to the castle’. That is the edge Ms Oboshie has. But the bottom line is that the flagbearer must pick a person he is comfortable with”.