Why Nana Chose Agyarko

NPP’s Reasons For Methodical And Strategic Appointment…

Why Nana Chose Agyarko

Faced with life in possible oblivion as the best President Ghana never had, NPP flag bearer Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo has played his last considered quality card by appointing seasoned banker, political scientist and economist, Collins Boakye Kyeremanteng Agyarko as director of the Party’s campaign, sparking off a fireball of protestations among certain media circles including Accra’s HOT FM.

In picking Mr. Boakye Agyarko ahead of the pack of heavily- tipped political heavyweights of Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku, Hackman Owusu Agyeman, Dan Kwaku Botwe, Kwabena Agyepong and the mass of stalwarts, Nana Addo believes that under his newest appointee all his previously uncrossed tees would be crossed while his un-dotted jays would be dotted rather graciously, to enable him fulfill the life-long dream of ascending to the presidency in 2012.

THE SUN learned that not even the high-profiled-big-wigs, who, in Nana’s previous appointment in 2007 imported THE SOKOTO GUDIRI and THE BEEFY AFRICAN DWARF cattle from Maiduguri-Nigeria (to enable him serve food to the mass of trooping visitors to his East-Legon residence) could catch Nana’s consideration, even though many reached the ends of the world to get him to name them to the enviable position.

“Boakye Agyarko settles in with solid epaulettes on his shoulders as a former vice-president of America’s Bank of New York. More importantly too, Nana believes he is the face of the unifying factor the Party badly needs to bridge the latent divide that obviously needs a mending of some sort”, a major Nana source told THE SUN while on the beat.

Following the failed into the dustbin of failure were some media houses who had mistaken the substance for the shadow and were lost in the razzmatazz game rather than deliverables, just when Nana Addo had his guts on about who was going to be his right hand man.

Last week Wednesday the trio of broadcasters led by veteran Sekyere Boateng, Akosua Safoa and regular host Ekooba Gyasi were too quick to deride Mr. Agyarko, when one of the three musketeers suggested the colourful Kwabena Agyepong or someone else would have been more appropriate because, Agyarko hardly speaks well.

However NPP pundits have been quick to return fire at the propaganda going on, and THE SUN has gone on ahead to learn that Nana Addo is nobody’s idea of a bad judge, having considered and weighed all options in arriving at Boakye Agyarko as the best jig-saw to fit the difficult puzzle, at this time of the Party’s life.

While on the investigative prowl THE SUN learned that a major candidate’s campaign team in the last primary actually offered Mr. Agyarko a fortune to switch allegiance, during the Party’s presidential primary at a time he was neck-deep in the Akufo Addo camp. The confirmation and re-confirmation from various quarters to THE SUN’s team gave an inkling of the potential of the gentleman.

A well-informed, simple servant and down-to-earth gentleman, the new campaign manager was wrongfully tagged WARLORD and KINGMAKER which he detested then by his humble submission that had he been any of the two, he would have ascended the presidential candidacy position for the NPP in his failed attempt at the primaries in 2007.

NPP stalwarts say Agyarko’s stock-in-trade is that smooth argumentative style where he soaks in all the punches and delivers those punishing staccato body shots on the counter, that have seen many reel until their knees buckled, making them lose debates by giant stride margins. “Even his rivals contend he has had to climb his mountain twice and many know that his road to relative stardom has been punctuated by hard lessons, whose punches he took on his chin without complaining otherwise, he would not have left his cozy position in America for the hot confines of the Ghana of our times”, the NPP source told THE SUN.

Born in 1956 to UP activist-merchant Kwasi Agyarko and school teacher Jane Ladze Padi from Ashanti New Town and Krobo-Odumase respectively, Agyarko entered (Jesus Christ’s own school) Mfantsipim in 1969 and after seven years, went to the University of Ghana to study Economics and Political Science.

He continued to the United States where he earned a certificate in Banking from the American Institute of Bankers and an MBA from Pace Unversity in New York. He has 22 years of professional banking expertise under his belt.

THE SUN’s background checks have it that Boakye Agyarko survived an extra-judicial execution attempt on his life on June 9, 1983 in a chilling episode which culminated in his escape into voluntary exile in the United States. Affectionately called TORINO by Mfantsipim School mates, he is a founding member of the NPP and a former trustee of the Busia Foundation, who has, on countless occasions in times past, mobilized his own resources to pay the salaries of junior staff at the NPP head office.

NPP watchers say his role as former chairman of the Danquah-Busia Club of North America and later on Coordinator for North America NPP added to his likeable personality, may well stand him in good stead to excel in his new position where he has the responsibility of returning the NPP back into power in 2012, or walk Nana Addo out of politics as probably the best President the nation never had.

The sun

FAKE RAMPS, CAUSING ACCIDENTS –PROTOA BOSS

The national chairman of the Progressive Owners Association of Ghana (PROTOA) Ben Amoabeng Peperah has said, one of the biggest causes of accidents at the present time is the instant mounting of speed ramps on the one hand, and the removal of road signs leading to several towns dotted along the many highways in the country on the other.

Chairman Amoabeng Peperah says many of the 6213 accident deaths between 2007 and 2010 across the length and breadth of the country can be attributed to such disturbing phenomena that many localities have been embarking upon, even though the exercise is unauthorized.

“PROTOA has been complaining of these problems for quite sometime now and we would want to appeal to the Roads and Highways Authority to clamp down on those acts and if possible, institute some punitive measures to accompany them,” he told THE SUN’s team of reporters.

Chairman Amoabeng Peperah complained that not only are people creating speed ramps at steep heights, they are doing so at unauthorized places such as curves and the like on particularly unfamiliar roads where commercial drivers are not conversant with, culminating in gory accidents all the time.

He informed that PROTOA as the second largest commercial transport grouping has set itself the task of holding seminars and symposia for its vast membership, in such a professional manner that should reduce the accident situation to the barest minimum.

The PROTOA national chairman also complained about the wanton removal of road signs that ought to direct drivers on what to do on the spur of the moment, when confronted with a murky situation behind the wheel and desired that, the MTTU of the Ghana Police Service would work extra hard to arrest the situation.

Chairman Amoabeng Peperah assured all other stakeholders in the transport industry of PROTOA’S support and undivided loyalty in working hard at remedying the apparently out-of-sorts accident situation confronting the country.

He further advised all drivers to drive defensively and tasked pedestrians to be extra watchful while strolling along the walk-ways that shoulder the roads because, it was one of the surest ways of avoiding accidents.