Defeated NPP MP’s Scramble For New Seats

Ayorkor Botchwey and Ursula Owusu Run For Safer Seats*

By Cecil Mensah

The Speaker of Parliament, Mrs. Joyce Adeline Bamford-Addo, has re-called
Parliament today “to consider some outstanding and other urgent
parliamentary business,” including the passage of the now famous and
controversial Constitutional Instrument 73 (CI73) which mandated the
Electoral Commission (EC) to create 45 new constituencies.

But what is unknown to many including ex-President John Kufuor is that
behind the numerous legal tussels the NPP is engaged in with the Electoral
Commission (EC), some defeated NPP Members of Parliament (MP’s) are
secretly scrambling for the yet-to-be created 45 seats with the hope of
returning to the House on January 7, 2013, after the December 7, 2012,
general elections.

Already NPP stalwarts such as Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey and Ursula Owusu,
winners of the Weija Constituency and Ablekuma South Constituency NPP
primaries in the Greater Accra Region, have opted for the newly created
Anyaa-Sowutuom and Ablekuma West Constituencies with the strong conviction
that they are safer winning those seats.

With Ursula Owusu, opting for Ablekuma West Constituency means that NPP has
no Parliamentary candidate vying for the Ablekuma South seat which is
currently occupied by the Minister of Information, Fritz Baffour.

In opting for the Anyaa-Sowutuom Constituency, Madam Shirley Ayorkor
Botchwey, onetime Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs has left the other
aspirants in the last primary in Weija to fight over the Bortianor,
Ngleshie, Amanfrom and Weija-Gbawe Constituencies.

Madam Botchwey is not the only sitting MP gunning for the yet-to-be created
constituencies, The Herald is informed that the incumbent NPP MP for the
Ahafo Ano South Constituency in the Brong Ahafo Region, Stephen Kweku
Ballado Manu, who lost the NPP’s primary to one Frank Manu- Adabor has
started circulating his posters and the NPP’s paraphernalia’s in the newly
created Tetele Constituency of the Saboba District of the Northern Region,
his hometown.

Lawyer Nkrabia Effah-Datey, an ex-MP for Brekum Constituency in the Brong
Ahafo Region and ex-Deputy Minister for Interior, is also said to be eyeing
a new constituency created out of his former constituency, for the NPP.

There are reports that the NPP, as part of its measures to ensure sanity
and avoid internal bickering, has directed that the parliamentary aspirants
and incumbent MPs who won or lost at their primaries would have the option
to choose one of the two constituencies they will want to represent, for
those who came second to take the other.

As part of this directives, sitting MPs who lost at their primaries are
relishing the EC’s decision to create the constituencies since it will
afford them the opportunity to once again bounce back as MPs and to enjoy
the largess that goes with that office.

The outgoing MPs, according to The Herald sources are therefore unhappy
with delays in the passing of the Constitutional Instrument (CI) legalizing
the creation of the constituencies by the EC.

The reports say the aspirants and MPs are secretly jubilating over the
creation of the constituencies since to them, this contest is devoid of the
acrimony and huge expenditures that usually characterized the party’s
primary.

The Okaikoi Central Constituency has been created out of the existing
Okaikoi North Constituency, which has Madam Elizabeth Sackey as the sitting
MP and in spite of losing the primary to Mr. Patrick Yaw Boamah, she is
busily campaigning for the Okaikoi North Constituency , as Mr. Boamah has
opted for the new constituency.

During the last Eid-ulfitr celebrations of Muslims, she was busily seen in
the Akweteyman, one of the electoral areas in the newly created
Constituency, distributing bags of rice and cartoons of cooking oil to some
Imams in the area to shore up her campaign.

In the Ashanti Region, The Herald is informed that people have lined up to
be considered for the Manhyia South Constituency seat which was created
from the Manhyia Constituency represented in Parliament by Dr. Mathew Opoku
Prempeh.

Those interested include Mr. Osei Asibey Antwi, a former Deputy Minister in
the Kufuor government, Mr. Omono Asamoah, former Youth Organizer and Mr.
Amofa Sarpong, the former Regional Coordinator of the National Youth
Employment Programme (NYEP).

The rest are the current Constituency Youth organizer, Chief Collins
Amankwa, Nana Yaw Osei, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Ghana
Journalist Association (GJA) and one Akwasi Konadu Bawuah.

Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the People’s National Convention (PNC)
Mr. Benard Monnah, has directed its executives in the newly created
Constituencies to hold primaries in waiting for the passage of the C.I 73
by Parliament.

A breakdown of the newly created forty-five Constituencies are as follows:
1. Ayawaso North
2. Okaikoi Central
3. Ablekuma West
4. Tema Central
5. Trobu
6. Bortianor Ngleshie Amanfrom
7. Anyaa Sowutuom

Brong Ahafo region(5)
1. Berekum East / West
2. Dorma Municipal
3. Banda Ahenkro
4. Pru West
5. Sene West

Ashanti Region: eight (8)
1. Ashanti East
2. Manso Edubia
3. Atwima Nwabiagya North
4. Manhyia South
5. Juaben
6. Asante Akim Central
7. Sekyere Afram Plains
8. Ahafo Ano South-East

Central Region: Four (4)
1. Cape Coast North
2. Gomoa Central
3. Awutu Senya East
4. Assin Central

Western Region: Four (4)
1. Kwesimintsim
2. Mpohor
3. Boti
4. Bia East

Volta Region: Four(4)
1. Akatsi North
2. Adaklu
3. South Dayi
4. Krachi Nchumuru

Eastern Region: Five (5)
1. Aburi
2. Asene/Akroso/Manso
3. Achiase
4. Atiwa East
5. Fanteakwa South

Northern Region: Five(5)
1. Damango
2. Kparibeto
3. Zabzugu
4. Sagnarigu North/East
5. Yunyoo

Upper East Region: Two(2)
1. Bolga Central
2. Garu

Upper West Region: One(1)
1. Daffiama/Bussie