A youth group of the New Patriotic Party in the Upper East region has attributed the failure of the party to win parliamentary seats in the region to the incompetence of the Regional Executives of the party.
According to the group called the Upper East Patriotic Movement for Growth, the current regional executives of the NPP in the upper east region led by a private legal practitioner Anthony Namoo have demonstrated sufficient lack of direction and competence to enable the party shore up its fortunes in the region though they were given enough resources ahead of the 2020 elections.
The New Patriotic Party lost three of the seats it occupied prior to the 2020 elections and performed less in the presidential results as compared to the 2016 elections. Though the seats were all occupied by Ministers of State, they were flipped to the opposition National Democratic Congress while annexing only one which was occupied by the NDC.
This in the assertion of the group is as a result of the failure of the executives to stage a result oriented campaign even though the party targeted some seven (7) constituencies to win in the region.
“In our beloved Upper East Region, it was ONLY a few Regional Executives who in the last month to elections found time to move across all the 15 Constituencies engaging floating voters and influential persons in those areas. The Regional Chairman who was justifiably expected to lead the CHARGE of securing the AT LEAST 7 SEATS chose to station himself in the NABDAM CONSTITUENCY, where he comes from. This is probably because per his intelligence, Nabdam was the only winnable constituency in the region. Could it thus be that, he did not want to associate himself with the remaining constituencies where his intelligence (if any) fore told him of failure? Well, this may just be a speculative thought but the facts are that, upon being stationed there; he lost that constituency with a wider margin than 2016, he lost his electoral area and he lost his polling station. Yes, coincidental or accidental, this can only mean one thing. He could not provide leadership even to himself let alone the region he shepherds,” a statement signed by the convener Ayuba Abubakar said.
The young patriots noted that the current regional executive body is made up of men of enviable credentials, the best composition the region has ever had, however that has instead led the party to a worse performance as compared to the previous election.
It was all joy when the Anthony Namoo Esq led Regional Executive (team) Took over the affairs of the party in the region in April 2018. We must emphasize that this team is the best on book that the Upper East NPP has ever assembled to lead its course. An outstanding Lawyer as Chairman, a Medical Doctor as Vice Chairman, Research Fellow as Secretary, Chartered Accountant as Treasurer and a renowned Resource Mobiliser as Organizer. In fact, the region could not have asked for anything more. Before this team came, the then Regional Chairman, Alhaji Mohammed Murtala Ibrahim had led his team from opposition to win three (3)Parliamentary seats from an initial one (1) seat going into the 2016 elections. His team also increased the Presidential Votes to about 35%. This was very commendable. Going into the 2020 elections, it was expected that the region will at least maintain these strives if at all we had no interest in meeting our own and current targets of not less than seven (7) seats,” they said.
They statement added “Unfortunately, the region was headed for a record worst performance. The region was to lose all its 3 seats and decrease its share of the Presidential votes to about 32%. The region was to suffer from leadership paralysis. A leadership that provided no direction to achieving any of its own set targets”.
The group in its conclusion has called for the resignation of the Upper East Regional Chairman of the party Lawyer Anthony Namoo over his failure to secure his own constituency seat though he made a pledge to win that seat or relinquish his position as regional chairman.
“During the vetting of the Aspirant Parliamentary Candidates for Nabdam, in the presence of the Constituency Executive, the Regional Executive and a Deputy General Secretary, Mr. Daniel Patrick Nii Laryea Squire who was the Vetting Committee Chairman, the Regional Chairman did not only announce but bragged that he would relinquish his position as Regional Chairman of the NPP if he lost the Nabdam Parliamentary Seat. THIS may explain largely why he chose to pitch camp in Nabdam virtually becoming the de facto Constituency Chairman and determining who was fit to be in the campaign of the party or not. Well. Leaders who seek to build credibility are expected to honor what they on their own volition make pronouncements on”.
