The Member of Parliament for the Subin constituency in the Ashanti region, Eugene Boakye Antwi, has made some shocking remarks about the New Patriotic Party's (NPP) 2007 presidential primaries held at the University of Ghana, Legon.
According to him, most of the contestants tried to influence the election outcome by using money, but their efforts were unsuccessful.
The MP mentioned some of the key contenders in that election, including Alan Kyerematen, Hackman Owusu Agyeman, and Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, among others, alleging that all of them paid huge sums of money to try and sway the election in their favour, however, despite their financial clout, they all lost to Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who emerged as the winner.
"Nana Akufo, I followed him in 2007, the day that we voted; I was his polling agent at Legon; Hon. Alan Kyerematen paid more than him; he paid five hundred; and Hon. Hackman Owusu Agyeman paid more than him.
"I have given you an example; I said December 22, 2007, at Legon, Hon Hackman Owusu Agyeman paid money more than Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Hon Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey also paid more than Nana Addo, and Hon Alan Kyerematen also paid more than Nana Addo; all of them paid more money than Nana Addo, but most of the voters realized that Nana Addo deserved it, so all of them voted for him," he said.
Speaking in an interview with Okay FM on April 19, 2023, he explained that the NPP's tradition of selecting its flagbearer is based on merit, message, long service, and loyalty, and not on financial considerations.
He further expressed his belief that the upcoming election is not about money but the candidate's message and track record of service and loyalty to the party.
"The kind of tradition that we live with is not about the money that determines who becomes a flagbearer or an MP but is about the message. From President Kufuor up till now, all the delegates have voted based on the message, long service, and loyalty—those are their criteria.
"So, I don't see any change now because the party that I know doesn't change easily. So, when it is time, everyone needs to go and sell his or her message…So if someone says, I have given TNT, money and all that, those things don't count during the voting process; what counts is one's message to the delegates or the voters…because a similar thing happened just in 2007, and it is not that far," he added.
His revelations come at a time when there are growing concerns about the role of money in Ghanaian politics and allegations of vote-buying in the party's upcoming primaries as some party stalwarts and flagbearer hopeful has hinted at displaying cash during the election.
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