Christine Churcher In Tough Race Today

Miss Christine Churcher, Member of Parliament for Cape Coast,today faces the greatest challenge to her political career when a 30-year-old tutor of Ghana National College battles her for the position of parliamentary candidate of the New Patriotic Party in the Cape Coast Constituency for the December elections.

The primary at the University Cape Coast Auditorium between Ms Churcher, who is also the Minister of State in-charge of Basic and Girl Child Education and Mr Edwin Godwin Buckman, assembly member for Bakaano and Chairman of the Finance and Administration Sub-Committee of the Cape Coast Municipal Assembly is expected to be keenly contested.

One hundred and eight polling station chairmen and 10 constituency executives are expected to vote at the primary which is likely to attract leading members of the NPP to Cape Coast.Mrs Churcher who has won the seat twice, was first elected as the NPP Parliamentary candidate for Cape Coast in 1996 and won again in the elections that brought the NPP to power in 2000.

Staunch supporters of Christie, as she is affectionately called predicted that the minister will definitely retain the slot and go on to win the seat in the 2004 elections.

However, those members who have rooted for the underdog Buckman are sure that this time round the Minister will fall arguing that most of the delegates who supported her in the previous primaries have now rooted for Buckman.