Concerned Members National Democratic Congress

Tema East Constituency

Date: 12th August, 2011

Dear Sir/Madam

A REJOINDER IN RESPONSE TO MEDIA PRONOUNCEMENT BY ONE STEPEHEN ADJEI

OVER THE IMPENDING TEMA EAST NDC PARLIAMENTARY PRIMARIES

There have been a number of articles and pronouncements in the press, carried by major news papers including the National Dailies by one Stephen Adjei, who creates the impression that he was a Parliamentary candidate in Tema East on the ticket of Democratic Freedom Party (DFP). The publication, clearly stage managed is a clear attempt to discredit the persona of Eben T. Anuwa-Amarh and present him in the public eye as ineptitude not worthy of leading the NDC in 2012 for Tema East. It is even more worrying because nominations are yet to be officially opened.

Since both Stephen and Kempes decided to attack the personality of Eben, we wish to address their credentials which will be reasons enough to establish the intent of their media campaign.

STEPHEN ADJEI (MO-SHAKE); In all his write up, Stephen has indicated that he was a parliamentary candidate for DFP in Tema East 2008, a fabricated lie, that is. In 2008, there were four candidates in Tema East, Hon. Samuel Evans Ashong Narh, NPP, Kempes Ofosu Ware, NDC, Richster Nii Amarh Amarfio, CPP and an independent candidate, Nii Sai Annan. DFP did not field a candidate so Stephen is not trustworthy.

Beyond that the said Stephen claims to be a DFP person and not an NDC member so what business has he in who the NDC selects to be their candidate. If NDC members are encouraging Kempes, does it lie in the mouth of a DFP man to tell the world, why not those NDC people.

Stephen is a notorious fraudster and an impersonator, he has never been elected a member of the Assembly yet he goes round police stations granting bails to criminal and posturing as an Assembly Member. He has contested Assembly elections three times in the Dade Agbo Electoral Area and lost all three, the latest is just in 2010. He has no political clout. He is currently being pursued by the families of some pirates from whom he collected GHC150 each in the promise of securing the release of those young social misfits. He made claims that Eben abandoned the NDC , but he continued in Ireland as the Chairman of the NDC and made modest contribution to NDC in 2008, abandoned his PhD programme and came back to support the party and led the 2nd round Tema East campaign to places were Kempes could not go.

It is therefore no wonder that this is the person to endorse the MCE whose tenure has reduced the party’s credibility, like a vulture they are found where there are carcasses.

Kempes Ofosu-Ware; if there is one person who has made it very difficult for the NDC in Tema East in 2012, then it is this person. The entire family of Kempes is religiously NPP, were he was the constituency secretary until he was priced out to join the NDC. He never really did contribute anything to the Party until he bought his way to become the parliamentary candidate. He has been notorious for bribing people to keep his deeds under cover, and if the Tema Press will be honest they will say it. On assuming office as the MCE he paid almost all of them out.

Recently he paid an NDC youth advocacy group that planned a press conference to expose his deeds GHS600, two of their leading members GHC100 each and two persons who were leading a section of the NDC in Tema East to run a press conference GHC500. Names are being withheld and would be released once he denies all these including the media people he paid. He was willing to pay the Chairman of the Canoe Owners Association who is a ward chairman and a very influential party member a lot more money so they dropped their news conference. He has promised to buy all delegates since according to him Eben is poor and with his mentors in the Party they have deliberately made him poor. Tema East is in shambles with him and it is the reason no committed NDC member will go out unless paid or his paid DFP person.

Eben T. Anuwa Amarh; He comes from a family firmly rooted in the NDC and his elder brother Kpakpo Gabby as they call him is a very committed cadre. He picked his membership card as an NDC member in 1992 and had been in the party ever since. Even during this period of ostracization and deprivation, he has not turned his back on the party. For a period spanning 3months, he has met almost all the wards more than once and has brought back some hope in despondent party faithful. Kempes won’t last in a ward meeting; he is likely to be stoned. He has gotten the wards to be meeting on regular basis and he is always with them, using his limited resources to activate the party and re-root the party in a constituency that has been orphaned by a selfish greedy MCE.

Eben has an impeccable career path from being a teacher, with a background in Geothermic Engineering from KNUST an MPhil in development studies; he worked with the lowliest trodden and vulnerable, both in Ghana and abroad. He worked with the Catholic Relief Service to bring relieve to the poor, especially in Northern Ghana. He has worked in countries such as Afghanistan, Malawi and many other poor countries, with extreme conflict and provocation, a character of a person willing to go the extra mile to serve humanity.

When he was in UK he mobilized resources to support the party in 2008, a donation which was received by the General Secretary of the Party. Eben one of the most adored indigenous persons in Tema and a person mentoring many, having taught at Manhean Sec Tech and being an old Student of Tema Secondary School. His gentle character is preventing all of us from responding to the actions of Kempes and his paid gangs. His interest is party unity and that is what he has been getting us to accomplished so we can have a team for 2012. He has been supporting the fishermen and encouraging them support the government in this difficult and challenging times.

In introducing Eben Tee at Tema Newtown durbar grounds in 2000, H.E then candidate Prof. JEA Mills said this of him; “this is the son of the land, and indigene, capable with long education”. This is somebody Prof has a lot of confidence in. Eben happened to have contested in elections when all the odds were against him. NDC lost major seats, such as Ledzokuku, Krowor, Dade Kotopon and had the Reform element claring staring at him, with their candidate Lawyer Kobb-Lumor. It was a year the NDC never had it right and so Ebens lost could not have been attributed to his ineptitude. Unlike when in 2008, the NPP presented an extremely unpopular candidate and Kempes had the support of the entire executive with a common purpose of winning, he could not improve on the fortunes of the party, instead he went around campaigning SKIRT AND BLOUSE; asking NPP persons who never like their parliamentary candidate to vote for him, since he was one of them and the NPP Presidential Candidate. Assertion by the DFP man and the MCE that in 2000 Eben was sponsored by the former first lady in one of the news papers whiles Kempes was sponsored in 2008 by H.E Prof Mills, and the attempt at linking Eben with the former 1st lady is a deliberate but failed attempt to further create disunity in the party, where as Eben is building bridges for the party. Both Eben and Kempes contested with H. E as the Presidential candidate, and in 2000, the party generally had bad results, with Eben receiving a lot of opposition from within. In 2004, Mrs. Emelia Adjei was contested from within by Albert Antwi Nuamah and their votes put together, which constituted the NDC votes was in excess of 34,000. In 2008, Kempis had the full support of the rank and file of the party but did not generally improve the votes of 2004, even at the time the party had goodwill among fisher folks and Ghanaians in general.

The issues; in September 2010, through the instigation of Kempes, events in Tema that led to the arrest and continues persecution of many innocent people has the tendency of breaking the spine of the party in the constituency and along the coastal communities in general. Then the canoe owners were complaining about the misuse of revenue generated from .3 of a litre being deducted from the premix to support the fisheries sector. Many complain were lodged with Kempes and when the report went to the Ministry he set up a committee. The committee found the premix committee culpable of corrupt act (report available) and recommended the removal of some members from the committee. It is the call for the implementation of the recommendations that Kempes connived with the Police and had the leadership of the Canoe Owners Association, none of whom was at the beach on the day of the incidence arrested.

Finally the committee shared part of the money on table, and the chief fisherman took GHC30, 000 home and has since not accounted for it. The group has since been calling for the committee to render accounts in fulfillment of H.E call for transparency. The group has written many letters in these direction but he has used his office as MCE to block all these calls. The group has also been calling for audited accounts on the 53% community development fund from the premix but nobody is responding and these prompted the news conference on Tuesday 9th August 2011, and their call on the MCE not to contest. It is worthy of note that most members of this group are active NDC faithfuls and some even ward executives.

The media propaganda by the MCE and his DFP friend are baseless.

Thank you,

Yours faithfully

Signed:

Theophilus Kugblenu

Former TEIN Propaganda Secretary/Head of Communication C. Poly and NDC Member

Party ID card No.06

Distribution;

H. E the President

Prof JEA Mills

H.E the Vice President

Mr. John Mahama

The General Secretary

NDC

The Media

The Secretary

Tema East Constituency