NPP committed to decent electioneering campaign - Botwe

Sunyani, Feb 28, GNA - Mr Dan Botwe, General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has said the NPP is committed to conducting a fair and decent campaign in the run-up to the December elections despite its over-riding determination to win power.

"Much as we are determined to leave no stone unturned in our bid to wrestle power this year, our campaigns will be devoid of foul play, insults and violence and we hope other parties will do the same to help consolidate our fledgling democracy."

Mr Botwe was speaking to newsmen at Sunyani on Sunday at the end of a two-day training of trainers seminar for 52 polling agents of the party drawn from the Ashanti and Brong Ahafo Regions.

He condemned the blatant use of state resources by the present government for party activities and hoped that the code of conduct being drawn up by the Inter-Party Advisory Committee and the Electoral Commission would check this canker.

Mr Botwe expressed concern about the Electoral Commission's ambivalence over whether people who have their names on the Voter's Register but have lost their photo identity cards would be allowed to vote.

Mr Botwe said the NPP would insist that a person's right to vote is upheld on condition that he has both his identity card and his name on the Voter's Register "since this is the only way to prevent multiple voting."

Major Quarshigah, the National Organiser, said the essence of the training programme "is to sharpen the monitoring skills of its polling agents to enable them to prevent any electoral fraud that might be carried out by any party.

"Our aim is to make sure that this year's general elections are not rigged by making sure that the over 100,000 agents that we are going to recruit and train have the means and knowledge to halt any electoral cheating."

Major Quarshigah urged the media and the electorate not rpt not to allow politicians who make fantastic promises get away with their lies but should question such politicians on how they intend to deliver on their promises.

Mr Paul Okoh and Mr Yaw Asiedu-Mensah, Parliamentary candidates for Asutifi North and Dormaa West, who participated in the training, attested to its usefulness, saying that "it has given us the skills to prevent any rigging attempts."