NPP presidential hopefuls clinching akuffo addo

By: Stephen A. Quaye.

When a boxing champion in a fight could no longer take heavy punches from his challenger what does he do? Exactly, he clinches in order not to be hit with a killer punch that will send him to the canvas.

If you don’t believe it go and ask ring side judges and they will tell you that they hear it all the time as trainers screams to their boxers,” KYEREKYERENO, KYEREKYERENO” to wit “clinch, clinch” to stop him from throwing heavy punches.

Most boxers use clinching at a time when they can not afford to, and that is when they are already tired. It does give them the chance to break their opponent’s momentum and stop him from hitting a few seconds.

Yes the goal of clinching in boxing is to tie up your opponent. Basically you want to capture both of his arms under yours to prevent him from lifting up his arms and punching.

That is besides the point but one can easily say that the dragging of the New Patriotic Party NPP to court by two card bearing members was unfortunate.

Their seeking of injunction on the super delegate’s conference bore stylistic resemblance of attempt by their presidential hopefuls to clinch Nana Akuffo Addo, the leading contender from handing them another defeat.

On October 18, 2014, about 140,000 members of the biggest opposition party in Ghana New Patriotic Party [NPP] delegates will hit the polls on the said date to select among three presidential hopefuls a presidential candidate for the party come 2016 general elections.

The three presidential hopefuls contesting to be elected as the party’s flag bearer for 2016 are the leading contender Nana Add Dankwa Akuffo Addo, Mr. Alan Kwadwo Kyeremanteng and Mr. Adai Nimo.

All these presidential hopefuls are touring the countryside expected to prove to the delegates why they should be elected as the presidential candidate’s for the NPP or president the country Ghana needs.

Then all of a sudden WHAM. The party was dragged to court by two card bearing members seeking injunction of the National Delegates Conference that will select presidential candidate next month.

What are the plaintiffs Rexford Agyei Frimpong and Opong Kyekyeku saying about the October 18, delegate’s conference? The date was in violation of the party’s constitution as it favours one candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo, the leading contender.

The simple question many people are asking is whether all the seven representatives of the aspirants did not agree on the said date before even the August 31 congress was held and if yes then why are they challenging the date now in court?

After the August 31 polls that massively voted for Nana Akuffo Addo, he should have been lying in his couch and enjoying Pizza and Coke, but no. He embarked on immediate nationwide campaign to canvass for votes in the upcoming super delegate’s conference.

Eight days after the delegate’s conference to select five out of seven that Akuffo Adddo had 87 percent of the general votes from the delegates, did anybody see his shadow in the national capital Accra?

He embarked on another campaign tour to canvas for votes in the upcoming super delegate’s conference on October 18, as he started from Wa and descending to Southern part of the country.

What did we see the remaining two presidential hopefuls doing? Licking their wounds from the defeat they suffered from the first round. Granting interviews in the media and making unsubstantiated statements.

The plaintiffs claim the date is too short for their preferred presidential hopefuls to interact with the 140,000 delegates nationwide.

But could they tell us what they were doing during and just after the first round? Did they go on sight seeing, business tour or field trips or were attending funerals, birth day party’s or better still attending marriage ceremonies?

Let us give them the benefit of the doubt that they went on campaign tours. Then they should be told that their results indicated that their messages were rejected by the delegates who voted for the one who made himself clear.

Really what message do Alan Kyeremanteng and Addai Nimo have for the delegates and entire Ghanaians? I have listened to them on radio via internet and can say they do not have any message for the 140,000 delegates who will be hitting the polls to select anyone of them for election 2016.

A case in study was Alan Kyeremanteng’s message to the delegates before voting on August 31 which I repeat here, “every constituency will receive one campaign pick up vehicle from me if they elect me as the presidential candidate of the NPP come 2016 elections”.

Akuffo Addo says, “My government will implement policies and programmes that will improve the economy, introduce free secondary school education, undertake projects to create jobs, provide quality health care for all and carry out agriculture programmes to feed the country”.

Among the two which statement is expected to sit well with the delegates to hit the polls and make inform choice?

Exactly, Ghanaians are now hungry and are looking up to someone who can fix the economy and carry out programmes that will bring about improvement in their lives and not just one who will just make promises.

Unless the Fast Track High Court sitting on the injunction case on October 3, 2014 rules that the date for the super delegates’ conference be changed, the super delegate’s conference will surely come off on October 18, 2014 and Na Akuf Addo will record landslide victory.

End.