The General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, has explained why he decided to leave his position and contest for the party's national chairman position.
Speaking in an XYZ TV interview monitored by GhanaWeb, Asiedu Nketiah said that he had served in the General Secretary position for too long and had to leave to give the youth of the party the opportunity to also serve.
He added that he took the decision to leave the general secretary position eight years ago but was persuaded to stay for the sake of the party.
"I have never believed that the chief executive of an organisation should be at post for too long. I consider 17 years (as General Secretary of the NDC) to be too long. I have demonstrated this all my life. I decided not to be a Member of Parliament again after three terms, not because somebody could have removed me but because I want to give the youth who had served me the chance to lead," he said in Twi.
He added that many people in the NDC had previously told him that they have the dream of becoming general secretary, but they are not contesting because they do not want to challenge him.
Asiedu Nketiah also explained that people staying in political party positions for too long makes the party less attractive to the youth.
He added that, comparing the NDC to the NPP (New Patriotic Party), the youth in the NPP transition faster to top positions than their NDC counterparts, which makes them more attractive.
"Look at this young man who became the General Secretary of the NPP (Justin Kodua Frimpong). He started in the NPP just 10 years ago. So, if he started in the same university as NDC members and he, a TESCON member, has risen from president (of TESCON) to youth organiser and now to the national organiser of the NPP, the youth will be more attracted to the NPP because they will feel they progress faster there," he said.
Some leading members of the NDC, including Ambassador Victor Smith and Kojo Adu-Asare, have suggested that Asiedu Ntetiah's decision to challenge the current chairman of the party, Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, is because he is bitter for not being chosen as the running mate of John Dramani Mahama for the 2020 presidential elections.
The party's national elections are slated for Saturday, December 17, 2022.
Candidates will be contesting for various positions, including the National Chairman, National Vice-Chairmen, General Secretary, Deputy General Secretary, National Organiser, Deputy National Organiser, and the National Treasurer and Deputy National Treasurer.
Others are the National Communications Officer and Deputy, as well as the National Zongo Caucus Coordinator.
The current National Chairman of the party, Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, is expected to face stiff competition from the outgoing General Secretary of the party, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, for the chairmanship position.
Watch the interview below:
Watch the second part of Elvis Afriyie Ankrah's interview on GhanaWeb TV below:
Also watch the nomination for the GhanaWeb Excellence Awards Youth Edition below:
General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah