NPP Primaries: The party protected no incumbent MP – Sammy Awuku

National Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Sammy Awuku has dismissed claims suggesting some incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) were protected from being contested by others in the recent party’s parliamentary primaries.

According to him, the party did nothing in securing their positions for them, as claimed by some people.

Speaking on the Point Blank segment of Eyewitness News on Monday, the party organizer noted that all decisions made towards the primaries were done by the party’s Executive Council in the interest of party members.

“I completely disagree that they deliberately protected some MPs and also gave up on some. I don’t think that is a fair analysis of our situation. What happened was that the National Executive Council decided that in some constituencies, these are the decisions we need to take and they take these decisions with the supreme interest of the party. Then it’s up to us as implementers of these decisions to get to the ground, activate our conflict resolution outfit chaired by the Chief of Staff and the party leadership at the regional and national levels to mend cracks where they are and also to calm tempers where necessary. So we took decisions based on some details presented to the NEC of the party and you can’t fall to this body. That is the highest decision making body when it comes to making decisions in respect of parliamentary primaries.”

He added, “For instance, were you expecting the NPP to open nominations or protect Adowa Safo in Dome Kwabenya? I’m sure if we had decided that Adwoa Safo should go unopposed, you would have said that we were not being democratic. At the end of the day, you realise that even though it was a keenly contested election, the delegates also decided to retain their sitting MPs.”

Vote buying

With respect to issue of vote buying, Sammy Awuku said the party will investigate all allegations adding that, he did not witness any form of inducement at the places he was assigned to but the party will probe the allegations.

“I heard allegations of inducement, bribing delegates, and all of that but let me be very honest with you as a practicing Christian. I never saw one aspirant or group of aspirants doling out money or bribing delegates and I also never saw any delegate or group of delegates receiving money in that regard. I’m being very honest. Maybe, it happened at dawn or maybe it happened at midnight, unfortunately, I don’t subscribe to sorcery and witchcraft and I may not be able to witness everything that might have happened in the middle of the night. But for me as the party’s organiser, that was detailed to a particular part of the country and monitored the process throughout I never for once saw anybody either giving out or receiving money. It may have occurred on my blindside and maybe it was just a mere allegation. I am not saying it never happened but I never saw it as a person.”

“But we are going to receive a report from the parliamentary elections committee and investigate it. We’ll investigate it. Let me be very clear that inducing a voter, inducing a delegate and trying to bribe his or her conscience to vote in a particular direction is inconsistent with the rules and regulations with the rules governing the parliamentary primaries and of course, investigate and if any delegate is listening was a recipient of these things, kindly let us know.”