MMDCEs hint at retaining Tema MCE as NALAG President

The race for the Presidency of the National Association of Local Authorities of Ghana (NALAG) has entered the homestretch with the Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE) for Tema, Felix Mensah Nii Annang-La, maintaining his lead as the favorite of delegates.

On Thursday, Nii Annang-La, who is the current President, attracted MMDCEs and Presiding Members from all over the Volta Region to the Ho Municipal Assembly Hall, where he held a News conference to officially declare his bid for re-election.

The crowd of delegates turned the conference into a support galore that almost turned into a victory rally for the Tema MCE.

MMDCEs and PMs openly pledged to retain him as President for another term.

Among them was Mr George Nelson Akorli, the Municipal Chief Executive for Ho West who said the Tema MCE took over the reins of NALAG Presidency with problems of the Association, including many court cases.

“But in the very short time that he has been in office, he has tackled the problems with effectiveness that we honestly have not seen in a long time.”

He said he was personally impressed with leadership that the NALAG President showed during a recent programme for Mayors in Malaysia. Felix Mensah Nii Annang-La, who had led the contingent of African Mayors to the programme, he said, showed a lot of class at the programme.

Reportedly, the Tema Mayor received a standing ovation after a presentation, with his colleagues from across the world doffing off their hats for him. “I therefore highly recommend him to delegates,” The Ho MCE said.

His virtual endorsement of the Tema Mayor was seconded by Mr Wisdom S. Seneadza Esq, DCE for Afadjato South.

During a speech to lay out the purpose of the News conference, he praised Felix Mensah Nii Annang-La as a man who had been humble in office, emphasising that the Tema MCE was popular among his peers, and there had been information from Assemblies across the country that most of the MMDCEs, and PMs wished to retain Nii Annang-La as NALAG President.

“I recommend him to you, colleague MMDCEs and PMs, because of his humility in office, resourcefulness and his fine quality as a team player,” Mr Seneadza said.

Nii Annang-La himself used the News conference to officially launch his bid for the Presidency of NALAG, which he was leading after taking over from his predecessor MCE for Tema, Mr. Isaac Ashai Odamtten.

Mr. Odamtten was elected NALAG President, while the Mayor of Tema, but was not able to complete his tenure because his party, the NDC, lost the 2016 elections. Felix Mensah Nii Annang-La, who succeeded him therefore automatically became NALAG President.

The Tema MCE told the roomful of MMDCEs, presiding Members and journalists that in the short time that he was NALAG President, he tackled head-on, some problems of NALAG. Among them, he said were numerous lawsuits against the Association.

“I have also won three prestigious positions for NALAG,” he said, enumerating the positions as Second Vice President of trans border decentralisation Corporation between the territorial communities of Abidjan-Lagos Corridor, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana , Togo, Benin and Nigeria, and Board Membership of United cities of Local Governments in Africa (UCLG-A) for West Africa region

The third one is Board Membership of Commonwealth Local Government Forum.

However, the achievement that really endeared the Tema MCE to NALAG delegates was his provision of motorcycles to Assembly members across the country.

After the News conference at the Ho Municipal Assembly Hall, Nii Annang-La led a short trip to a warehouse of waste company, Zoomlion, where 1,037 of motorbikes provided to Assembly Members in the Volta region were being assembled.

The Tema MCE, in a short unplanned speech, thanked President Akufo-Addo and the Local Government Minister for acceding to his lobby for the motorcycles to be provided to the Assembly members.

Dr. Archibald Letsa, the Volta regional Minister who also surfaced at the location of the Motor Bikes, praised the Tema MCE for his resourcefulness and hoped that as NALAG President for another term, he would deliver more results.

NALAG goes to the polls on the 12th of June, to elect new executives.