<<Print>>As the National Democratic Congess (NDC) prepares to announce dates for its primaries for the 2016 general election, a deputy minister of state has stated that it will be suicidal for anyone to contest President John Dramani Mahama in the presidential primary.
Mr Samuel Yaw Adusei, a Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, holds the view that the President has performed so creditably that everything pointed to him leading the NDC to cut the "noisy NPP" to size in the 2016 elections.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra yesterday, Mr Adusei said, "I have said it before and I still hold on to the view that President Mahama must go unopposed.
"He must not be contested. Up to now, I know no one will do that because it will be a senseless venture," he said.
On the other hand, he maintained that the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party should put impediments in the way of anyone who might want to contest the President.
NEC to meet Thursday
The NEC of the NDC will meet on Thursday, August 13, 2015 to fix final dates for the presidential and parliamentary primaries.
It had earlier come out with provisional dates, which had October 24, 2015, for the presidential and parliamentary polls with the opening of nominations on August 27, 2015.
Vetting of parliamentary candidates was also set for September 27, 2015, while that of the presidential was on October 10, 2015.
Performing President
Mr Adusei said a performing President was one who was able to accept challenges and devise effective strategies to overcome them.
"This is exactly what President Mahama is doing and we in the party will have to give him all the backing to carry on with the good work," he said.
Mr Adusei said the numerous development projects undertaken across the country were a testimony of the good works of the President.
He said the New Patriotic Party (NPP) knew there was no way their presidential candidate , Nana Akufo-Addo, could beat President Mahama in 2016, which was why they had resorted to lies and half-truths to paint the President and the NDC in a bad light.
The deputy minister, therefore, called for continuous unity in the NDC, saying that was one sure way of retaining power.
Earlier this year, a lecturer at the University of Education, Mr Yarhands Dissou Arthur, was reported to have advised members of the NDC against contesting President Mahama in the presidential primary in order to foster party unity.
He said in a press statement that allowing the President to go unchallenged would forestall any “needless distractions” in the ruling party, as well as “maintain a rock solid front.”