NPP stands to win 2008 Presidential elections - Chief

Kpedze (V/R), May 14, GNA - Togbe Atsridom V, Paramount Chief of Kpedze Traditional Area on Wednesday said Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, flag-bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) stood to win this year's presidential elections.

"We are not saying we are soothsayers but he will win," Togbe Atsridom said this when Nana Akufo-Addo called on Chiefs from the Ho-West Constituency at Kpedze at the start of a three-week campaign tour of the Volta Region.

Speaking at a durbar later, Togbe Atsridom said; "Let us not say we will remain where we were" and that the past was different. The people of Kpedze were however slow in warming up to Nana Akufo-Addo's presence in town.

The response from the people of Kpetoe in the Ho-East constituency where Mr Allan Kyeremanten, runner up to the NPP Presidential race had gone to prepare the grounds for Nana Akufo-Addo was however spontaneous. Addressing the Chiefs and people of the two constituencies separately, Nana Akufo-Addo said he was devoting three weeks of his campaign time to the Volta region, "which has been the most difficult region for the NPP".

He said President John Agyekum Kufuor had 10.1 percent and 7.5 percent of votes respectively in the Ho-West and Ho-East constituencies in the 2004 Presidential elections as against 89.1 percent and 90.7 percent respectively for Professor John Evans Atta Mills of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

"I am confident that we are going to do much better this year. Let us set for ourselves a target of seven MPs from the region", he later told party activists at the World Vision International centre in Ho. He said the Volta region had been a strong ally of the Danquah-Busia political tradition but propaganda and misunderstanding had wrecked that relationship and pledged to work hard to restore it. Nana Akufo-Addo said the Danquah-Busia political tradition and the people had identical principles of private enterprise, rule of law, hard work and love of liberty.

Mr Kyeremanten said the December elections were a champion-of-champions contest in which the records and visions of the contesting parties would be put on the scale adding, "The December elections are about a vote of confidence".

Mr Boakye K. Agyarko, a contestant of the NPP Presidential flag-race said the 2008 elections were a champion-of champions' race between the NPP and the NDC.

He said the elections were about who could guarantee development and the future of the children and not who could give token gifts.

Mr Agyarko said Nana Akufo-Addo's victory in December was a foregone conclusion and the people of the Volta region must be part of that victory.

He therefore urged voters in the two constituencies to vote for Mr Mawutor Goh as Member of Parliament (MP) for Ho-West and Mr Mawuli Dabi for Ho-East because they needed MPs who could approach the President and secure their interests.