The Vetting Committee of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Pres¬idential Primary recently cleared all the 10 presidential aspirants seek¬ing to lead the party into the 2024 general elections in the country. The aspirants are Mr Alan Kwadwo Kyer¬ematen, former Trade and Industry Minister, Alhaji Mahamudu Bawumia, the siting Vice President of the Re¬public of Ghana, Mr Kwadwo Poku, Mr Boakye Kyerematee Agyarko, Mr Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, Mr Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, Dr Kofi Konadu Apra¬ku, Dr Owusu Akoto Afriyie, former Food and Agriculture Minister, Mr Joe Ghartey and Mr Francis Addai-Nimoh.

VETTING COMMITTEE’S REPORT
According to a statement signed by the party’s General Secretary, Justin Frimpong Kodua, the Vetting Commit¬tee submitted its report to the Na¬tional Council of the NPP on Monday, July 10, 2023, pursuant to the Article 10(3) of the NPP’s Constitution. He said the National Council of the NPP was scheduled to deliberate on the Vetting Committee’s recommenda¬tions on July 20, 2023.
Per the rules of the game, if more than five aspirants qualify to con¬test, the party will convene a special electoral college of 900 delegates to select five candidates for the final round. So far, all the aspirants have been cleared for the contest by the Vetting Committee of the Party, and are awaiting for the final decision by the electoral college to pick five among the lot. That’s an interesting scenario and the party supporters and indeed, all Ghanaians are waiting anxiously with bated breath for the outcome of the verdict of the elec¬toral college.

SPECIAL DELEGATES CONFERENCE
This means that, the ruling par¬ty in August will convene a special delegates’ conference to select five candidates to contest the November 4, 2023 Presidential primary. This writer and indeed all Ghanaians, particularly the NPP fraternity both home and abroad wish the 10 aspi¬rants the best of luck as they journey to hold the mantle of leadership, and for that matter the flagbearer of the NPP.
Indeed, it is only one person out of the lot who can wear the leadership crown of the party. It is therefore the expectation of the rank and file of the party that once the person is chosen from the lot, all the other contestants will rally behind him to fight for the main general elections in 2024.
The unfortunate thing is that no female presented herself to contest for this leadership position. Indeed, the National Council of the party was able to meet on July 20, 2023 and has initiated steps which included the balloting of positions for the contes¬tants in the forthcoming electoral college to select the five among the lot.
CAMPAIGN MESSAGES TO DELE¬GATES
As the electoral college gears itself to select five among the 10 aspirants out of which the best among that five will face delegates to decide on one at a delegates’ conference later on in August, almost all the aspirants have launched their campaigns in earnest and are criss-crossing the nooks and crannies of the country with their campaign messages to woo the confidence of the delegates in order to give them their mandates. Apart from door-to-door campaign, some have mounted campaign plat¬forms to speak to the people about their mission and vision and why they should be given the mandates to lead the party, and subsequently contest the main elections in 2024. It is quite interesting though, but full of ten¬sion, anxiety and hopefulness among the contestants.
The most negative and setbacks of some of these campaigns are ten¬dencies by some of the aspirants to attack personalities with insults, insinuations/innuendo, and condem¬nations instead of issue-based cam¬paigns. The campaign teams of some of these aspirants and contestants have been worse offenders, attack¬ing and insulting opponents as if the contestants are coming from different political parties. The issue becomes worse, worrying and disturbing, when the contestants themselves start attacking, criticising one another and flaunting their wealth as if money reigns supreme in the selection of a flagbearer of a party.
UNITY OF THE NPP
“We are one family and we must remain united. Once the contest concludes, we will come together as a cohesive force to ensure that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) does not return to power. That unity is of utmost importance. Let us maintain the NPP’s position of power and foster unity within the party,” says DrBawumia in one of his cam¬paign messages during his tour of the Greater Accra Region. On another campaign platform, DrBawumia was spotted lashing at contestants who think because of their affluence and richness, they can govern this coun¬try, saying past NPP leaders were not rich and, therefore did not use money to govern this country but strategies and ideas.
ATTACK ON VICE PRESIDENT
That statement seemed not to have gone down well with one of the aspirants, Kennedy OheneAg¬yapong, who threw back tantrums and uncontrolled outburst and anger on DrBawumia recently in one of his campaign tours in the country. According to MrAgyapong who listed some of the businesses he owns, he was more of a strategist than the Vice President who is the head of the Eco¬nomic Management Team. “With my steel plant, I am employing thousands of workers in this country by the next few months, I have the biggest cold store in the whole of Africa, as for you, the government pays you, pays your house girls, pays your security, you are living in government bunga¬lows. But I pay 7,158 workers every month in this country. So, between the two of us who is the strategist? This is internal politics and so we shouldn’t be dirty, but if they at¬tack me, I will reply,” says Kennedy Agyapong.
He asked the Vice President not to call himself a strategist when he took over when the cedi was selling at GHc4 but now selling at GHc12.
CAMPAIGN OF INSULTS AND PERSON¬ALITY ATTACKS
Indeed, these campaigns of insults and personal attacks by these pres¬idential hopefuls especially within the same party or stable do not augur well for the NPP and the earlier they put a stop to some of these things, the better it will serve the interest of the party as well as to safeguard and protect it. When they start trading insults at each other at this prema¬ture stage, they will definitely arm and give ammunition to the larger opposition party, the NDC to attack and criticise the party and whoever may be selected to lead the party in the 2024 general elections.
NPP LEADERSHIP MUST CALL ASPI¬RANTS TO ORDER
This is the time for the leadership of the party to quickly intervene and caution all the aspirants to be civil and decorous in their campaign messages and utterances on political platforms in order not to wash their dirty linens in public. Yes, they can embark on their campaigns alright based on their vision and mission for Ghanaians and not to destroy themselves through such negative propagandas. Ghanaians are looking forward for visionary and focused leaders and not leaders who have nothing to offer this country and, therefore let’s your campaigns be constructive and issue-based. Once again, we wish all the NPP presiden¬tial aspirants good and the best of luck.
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By Charles Neequaye