After denying The aL-hAJJ’s series of publications that the 2016 flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will bequeath the flag bearer title to his twice unlucky running mate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the biggest opposition party has finally conceded there is such arrangement.
Even though the party is yet to make that explicit and official, Minority Leader in Parliament, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu let the “concealed information” out when he hinted Dr Bawumia’s expected elevation to the standard bearer post.
Speaking at the first National Nasara conference of the party last weekend, the Suame MP, as part of preparing the minds of party supporters ahead of the “big” announcement, subtly gave a clue of what the NPP leadership intend to do as the November 7 general elections draw near.
Letting-out what many in the top echelons of the NPP considers classified information; Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu said he was confident ‘in the not too distant future’ the party will be the first political party in Ghana to present a Muslim as Presidential Candidate.
The Minority Leader said the party had set the tone for victory in November 2016 with the ‘religious unity’ it had displayed within its ranks and declared that, the opposition New Patriotic Party’s triumph at the polls in November is not far from sight.
“With today’s meeting here, the victory of the party in 2016 has started. We have begun today, the party’s impending victory at the polls in 2016. The two main religions in the country give us a good foundation to begin this effort in very solid fashion.” He stated.
The Nasara Club is the party’s wing, which rallies Muslims and people of northern descent living in settler communities popularly known as Zongos dotted across the country.
In an apparent reference to Dr Bawumia’s imminent elevation to the post of NPP flag bearer, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu told the gathering that, the NPP had given consideration to the presence of the country’s two foremost religions, Islam and Christianity. For that reason, he said, the NPP had been consistent since 1992 – except for 1996, when the NPP formed an alliance with the People’s Convention Party – in partnering a Christian flagbearer with a Muslim running mate. He was confident that in the near future, the NPP will be the first political party to present a Muslim as presidential candidate, during which time; he will expect that a Christian will be named as running mate.
The Minority leader’s statement is virtually giving meaning to series of publications by The aL-hAJJ that Nana AKufo-Addo’s takeover of the flag bearer slot for the third time was to only prepare grounds for the triumphant ascension of his protégé, Dr Bawumia, to the highest post.
The aL-hAJJ in the run up to the NPP flag bearer contest revealed that Nana Akufo-Addo and his henchmen, mainly from the Akyem stock, preferred the former deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana instead of Alan Kyerematen to lead the NPP into the next presidential election in the event he (Nana Akufo) is unable to make it.
The arrangement, this paper reported, was for Nana Akufo-Addo to annex the flag bearer post for the third time and immediately nominate Dr Bawumia as his running mate, which, although rubbished by the NPP, but came to pass.
As part of the strategy, few months into the official filling of nominations for the 2016 polls, the former Abuakwa South legislator was to step down, citing obvious reasons but will recommend Dr Bawumia as his replacer.
This was said to have been carefully planned in such a way that the NPP will be hard press for time to go for another national delegatyes congress to elect a new flag bearer to square off with President John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress and also, to avoid further acrimony in the party.
Though members of the NPP and some Ghanaians took The aL-hAJJ to the cleaners, describing the reportage as pure fabrication, the revelation over the weekend at the Nasara conference by no mean a person than the Minority leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu is only one step at confirming that after all, publications by this paper was not out of place.
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