Hassan Ayariga to endorse 1 of 7 presidential candidates

Disqualified presidential nominee of the All People’s Congress (APC), Dr Hassan Ayariga, is set to declare his support for one of the seven candidates contesting this year’s presidential election.

Dr Ayariga is scheduled to make the declaration next week Thursday at the APC’s extraordinary national delegates congress in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.

Although the party is silent on the candidate Dr Ayariga would endorse for the December 7 elections, political watchers are predicting he is likely to declare support for President John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress.

Many Ghanaians have over the years held the view Dr Ayariga and his APC are being sponsored by the NDC against the New Patriotic Party in view of his campaign utterances, but Dr Ayariga has rejected that claim.

A statement issued by the party’s General Secretary, Razak Kojo Opoku, said the “APC believes in win and share power,” suggesting the APC will be making overtures to the candidate to be endorsed.

Dr Ayariga and 12 other presidential nominees were on October 10 disqualified from contesting the December 7 elections after the Electoral Commission discovered various anomalies some of which bothered on criminality, on their nomination forms.

Many of the candidates, including the Progressive People’s Party’s Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom challenged the Commission’s decision in Court which ultimately got the Supreme Court to order the EC to give the disqualified nominees the opportunity to correct errors on their forms for re-submission and consideration.

But Dr Ayariga for the second time, was disqualified by the EC on November 9 for failing to satisfy the entire requirement on the forms as demanded by the law (C.I.94) regarding the elections.

The APC has since condemned the decision of the Commission, which it claims it is based purely on personal issues the chairperson, Charlotte Osei, has against Dr Ayariga.

The party has also served notice to go to court to have the decision annulled.

Four-year action plan

The party says though its presidential nominee is not contesting the elections, it shall continue to support and campaign for its parliamentary candidates across the country to win their seats.

Meanwhile, the party has drawn a four-year action plan, which earnestly sets its preparation towards the 2020 general elections in motion.

As part of the plan, the party intends to acquire new district and regional offices, as well as elect polling station and constituency executives in 2017.

In 2018, it will elect regional executives, set up regional and national communication teams, and hold its National Delegates Congress to elect national executives, parliamentary candidates and presidential candidate for the 2020 elections.

The party has also planned to launch its 2020 manifesto in 2019 after which it will begin what it calls ‘come on board tour’ across the country.

Presidential and parliamentary campaigns of the party have also been set for 2020.

A running mate for the presidential nominee will be chosen the same year, the party said, after which it will increase momentum for its campaign and election activities.