Politics of Monday, 14 October 2019

Source: mypurefmonline.com

2020 Elections: Retain Francisca Oteng Mensah in Parliament – Akufo Addo

Akufo-Addo and Francisca Oteng Mensah Akufo-Addo and Francisca Oteng Mensah

President Akufo-Addo has urged the people of Kwabre East constituency to retain
Ghana’s youngest Member of Parliament, Francisca Oteng Mensah in the upcoming parliamentary primaries.

Akufo-Addo said this when he was addressing a durbar organized by the chiefs and people of the Kwabre East Municipality in the Ashanti region at the palace of Mampontenghene, Barima Saasi Ayeboafo II on Thursday, October 10, 2019.

His recommendation followed an appeal by the Mampontenghene for him to adopt the twenty-six-year-old legislator as his own daughter in his concluding remarks in his address to President Akufo Addo and his entourage.

“Finally, I appeal to you for Francisca, our daughter, she is young; we have given her to you, so take care of her”, Mampontenghene told the President.

The President had paid a courtesy call on the Mampontenghene and the other chiefs and people of the Kwabre East Municipality; he also cut the sod for the construction of 5.5 km of Mamponteng town roads.

In his response, President Akufo Addo told the thousands of people and chiefs gathered at the function that, he would personally make sure the Kwabre East MP appears on the ballot paper once again in the 2020 parliamentary elections and go on to elevate her if his government wins a second term.

“I have taken your call for me to adopt her in good fate and I do not take it lightly at all; in the coming elections, she must be upheld again and if God blesses my administration with a second term, Nana, you will see how I would elevate her in your honor.” the President assured the chief and his subjects.

The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) obtained its highest number of their votes yet, from the Kwabre East Constituency in the 2016 general elections.

President Nana Akufo Addo, who was then-candidate, garnered a record 71,112 votes representing 81.77% of valid votes cast; Francisca Oteng Mensah, who was then only twenty-three years old and a level 300 student at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) got 71,757 votes representing 83.03% of valid votes cast, to become member of parliament ahead of four other contenders.

She has since her entry into Parliament, been a staunch advocate for gender equality, girl education, and youth empowerment.