The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has a new crop of national executive officers to steer the affairs of the party till 2018 when the next national delegates conference is expected to be held.
At its 16th national delegates conference held on Saturday April 12, at the Tamale Sports Stadium in the Northern Region, the new national executive officers were elected to manage the affairs of the party for the next four years and also to prepare and lead the party into the 2016 general elections.
Diverse backgrounds
The newly elected members of the national executive come with diverse backgrounds which political pundits have observed bode well to help the party galvanise support and harmonise party work in the next general election.
Mr Obetsebi Lamptey and most of his executive members lost their re-election bid when delegates convincingly voted for Mr Paul Afoko and other contenders to lead the party.
The only survivor in the Jake Obetsebi Lamptey-led administration, Otiko Afisa Djaba, faced very stiff opposition; an indication that delegates were not satisfied with their performance.
Among the new faces to serve on the executive committee with Mr Afoko are Mr Kwabena Agyepong, General Secretary; Mr Freddie Blay, First Vice-Chairman; Mr Sammy Crabbe, Second Vice-Chairman; Mr F.F. Antoh, Third Vice-Chairman, and Mr Sammy Awuku, National Youth Organiser.
Others are Madam Otiko Afisa Djaba, National Women’s Organiser; Alhaji Kamal-deen Abdulai, National Nasara Coordinator; Mr John Boadu, National Organiser, and Mr Emmanuel Abankwah Yeboah, National Treasurer.
After about six years in opposition, a lot is expected of this team which some pundits have already described as a “formidable squad.”
In his acceptance speech, Mr Afoko told the party to prepare for government and political power.
How the members of the National executive will strategise to meet the huge expectations of the teeming supporters is an issue to contend with. It calls for team work, unity of purpose and a party that has an appeal across the board.
Interesting key scenarios
There were interesting key scenarios at the conference which saw Mr Afoko garner 2,032 votes to win the chairmanship race.
The heaviest casualty at the conference was Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey, who surprisingly got a meagre 66 votes, in his determination to be re-elected as the national chairman of the party.
Mr John Boadu, the newly elected National Organiser got the highest votes of 3,279 demonstrating his wide support among the delegates, while the incumbent Alhaji Moctar Bambar got 476 votes. Interesingly, it will be recalled that during the 2010 national delegates conference of the NPP in Kumasi, the two got similar votes but in a reverse order.
Mr Emmanuel Abankwa Yeboah secured a comfortable 2,488 votes to defeat incumbent Esther Ofori who got 503 votes, to become the new National Treasurer.
Incumbent Otiko Afisa Djaba, the only female elected into the 10-member national executive, had to struggle to garner 276 votes to beat incumbent deputy national treasurer, Gifty Tina Mensah, who got 250 votes.
Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey and Mrs Ofori, two incumbents, got the least votes in their respective groups.
