Amaliba rejects NDC nomination forms; accuses party elders of acting in bad faith

Abraham Amaliba, a member of the legal team of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has described as disappointing, a decision by some elders of the party in the Bolgatanga Central constituency to pick nomination forms for one of the Aspirants seeking to be elected Parliament candidate of the party for the constituency.

Three persons including the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) Hon. Isaac Adongo are readying to contesting in the August 24, 2019 internal contest to elect a candidate for the 2020 general elections.

Mr Abraham Amaliba who contested in the 2015 parliament primaries and lost to Isaac Adongo declined to enter the upcoming race. A decision he has said was taken in a bid to restore unity in the party in the Bolgatanga Central constituency.

“After the 2015 primaries, the constituency was sharply divided. Until this day, there has not been unity in NDC camp in the constituency. My refusal or failure to pick the form is to ensure the return of unity in the constituency. So I decided to shelve my ambition for the unity of the party,” he revealed in an interview on Yem Radio in Bolgatanga monitored by MyNewsGh.com.

The now Head of the legal team of the NDC, however, could not fathom why some elders of the party in the constituency would pick forms on behalf of one of the Aspirants whom he declined to name.

In his view, the elders would have better played a unifying role to unite the grassroots of the party instead of showing some bias by subtly supporting a particular aspirant.

“In all these I’m disappointed in some of the elders of the party in the constituency. I thought that they should have taken the bold step to bring about unity but when you have some who are elders going to pick forms for an aspiring, then it’s a clear indication that they have failed. They should have been working for unity in the party and not what they did,” he remarked.

Checks by this news portal however revealed the aspirant in question whose form was picked by some elders is the incumbent MP, Isaac Adongo.

Sources within the party said the position of the elders in question was made known to key members of the party. The source also added that the elders proposed that Hon. Isaac Adongo goes unopposed, a proposal they deem is the most appropriate to solidify the party for victory in 2020.

“Adongo going unopposed would have been very good because he has proven to be a solid person for the party. We all can see his recognition and works since he came in,” the source said.

In the fiercely contested contest in 2015, Mr Amaliba polled 3,050 votes while Emmanuel Opam and George Gamson had 2,956 and 906.

Isaac Adongo won with total votes of 4,290.