Confusion Rocks Sale of NPP Tema East Constituency Forms

The Tema East Constituency Second Vice Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has asked the constituency executives to be fair in the conduct of the polling station executives elections.

In admonishing the Member of Parliament (MP) of Tema East, Mr. Daniel Titus Glover in particular, Mr. Jonathan Tetteh Annan says “If he believes he has worked well, he should make everything open, but what he is doing  now shows that he’s afraid of his own shadow.”

He said this at the constituency office Community One, Tema during a standoff between party members hoping to buy and file their nomination forms and party officials who were perceived to be delaying the process.

Amidst the chaos and the stampede by party faithful to secure the forms, Mr. Annan explained that, “Forms came out last Tuesday and would have to be sold at least 2 days before the elections, and we are having elections tomorrow, so it’s obvious they are sabotaging some candidates.”

The Constituency Research and Elections Officer, Mr. Sumaila Alhassan, expressed worry about how the said forms were sent to the private office of the MP for Tema East by saying that “when I went to his office, I met them with the forms, and when I enquired they said they were working on them.”

He observed that the party office was the official place for the conduct of party business therefore thought it was wrong to have sent them to the MPs office.

In response, The Tema East Constituency Chairman of the NPP, Mr. Ofoe Teye, said at the regional meeting of the NPP, Mr. Titus-Glover suggested that the forms for Tema East must be stamped and signed by the chairman because of some past experiences.

He added that, “When the regional representative brought the forms, the party office was under lock, so I asked the gentleman to come to the MP’s office where we would do the stamping and authentications.”

He said because they had agreed to start the selling of the forms on the 17th of January, he asked that the about 600 forms that had been authenticated be brought to the party office to be sold as the office padlock had been broken.

“It wasn’t the MP who said they should send the forms to his office; it happened because the gentleman who brought the forms was handicapped because the one with the keys had travelled to his home town,” he explained.

He explained that the forms selling started from Wednesday afternoon and was supposed to last for three days so they could conduct the Tema Newtown elections on the 20th of January and then move to Community One.

“So if you don’t come till the last day you don’t put pressure on the process.”

He said, “We are not trying to replace the old delegates. Anybody who is eligible to contest can do that; we are not denying anybody. The forms are there and after everything we will know how many are left.”

Meawhile, reports from Bankuman and other polling stations in Tema Newtown indicate that the election had been compromised by macho men who prevented some of the party members from voting.

Mr Ofoe Tetteh has declined to comment on the issue.

Source: GNA