NDC political activities intensify in Ashaiman Constituency
The campaign by aspirants wishing to be elected parliamentary candidate of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Ashaiman Constituency has become very intense, with candidates embarking on house-to-house campaigns to convince card-bearing members of the party to elect them in the November 7, 2015 primary.
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Posters bearing the images of the candidates and touting their strengths are all over the constituency.
Six leading members of the party in the constituency are contesting the parliamentary primaries.
They are Mr Alfred Agbesi, the Member of Parliament for the area; Mr Emmanuel Max Voy, an educationist and entrepreneur; Numo Adinortey Addison, a former Municipal Chief Executive of Ashaiman; Mr Ernest Norgbey, an officer of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO); Mr Abass Osabutey, a communications officer of the party, and Mr Emmanuel Kumadey, a journalist and lawyer.
Two-horse race
Another member of the party, Mr Tony Afenyo, who also filed his papers to contest the elections, was disqualified on the grounds that he contested the 2012 election as an independent candidate.
Although each candidate has managed to garner some support among the voters, the contest appears to be a two-horse race between the incumbent, Mr Agbesi, and Mr Kumadey.
Mr Agbesi appears to have an alleged promise he made in 2012 not to contest the 2016 election going against him, as some constituents accuse him of going back on his word and have vowed to not vote for him.
The situation gives 37-year-old Mr Kumadey a slight edge.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic, Mr Kumadey, who is popularly known as Lawyer Akukor, said he was confident of emerging victorious on November 7, 2015.
Currently a branch secretary and a member of the Youth Working Committee of the party in the constituency, he said his main focus (if he wins the primaries and eventually becomes a Member of Parliament) would be to address the problems of youth unemployment and poor sanitation in Ashaiman.
Main focus
Mr Kumadey said Ashaiman was engulfed in filth and added that the problem had not been addressed head-on.
As MP, he said, he would ensure a clean environment and also lobby for the construction of an underground car park in the constituency.
He said he would also help the youth acquire employable skills and ensure that those who had business ideas but did not have the financial wherewithal would be able to secure funds to execute their plans.
He added that many funds had been established in the country, which could be accessed with well-crafted business proposals, so he would assist the teeming unemployed people within the constituency who had business acumen to secure funds to engage in small businesses.
That, he stated, would help address the unemployment situation at Ashaiman.
According to him, most of the youth within the constituency have become aggrieved because of their unemployed status and only gainful employment could assuage their pain.
Mr Kumadey says he has a track record of leadership that dates back to his days in secondary school and the University of Ghana, Legon, where he was awarded a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and Philosophy and a Master's degree in International Affairs.
