I t’s a lie; I’ve never advocated for sitting NPP MPs to be unchallenged, says Bawumia:The New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) vice president, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, denied calls for all current mps to run unopposed in the next parliamentary primary.
He claims that he could not have said it because the NPP’s constitution forbids even the possibility of such a situation.
Dr. Bawumia, a candidate for the NPP’s flagbearer position in the general elections of 2024, claimed that his opponents are using this as a ruse to attack him, but that it will fail.
As part of his nationwide engagement with party executives ahead of the NPP Presidential Primary, Dr. Bawumia made a statement at the Tatale-Sanguli constituency in the Northern Region on Tuesday, October 24. He said, “The third lie I have heard this morning is that I want to say that all sitting MPs should go unopposed and nobody should contest a sitting MP. Who am I to say that?
“Even the party constitution prohibits such. Since democracy makes this party stronger, I will never advocate for incumbent MPs to be unchallenged.
He continued, “Any constituency must have unanimity, so that falsehood should be left alone. However, as I’ve said, their strategy is for you to miss the ball and not the man, but in this case, you will miss the man because we won’t let their falsehoods take root.
The NPP is getting ready for the election of a flagbearer for the 2024 elections on November 4.
The rules for the primary elections, which will be held at all 276 of the country’s constituencies and the Party Headquarters in Asylum Down, Accra, have already been made public by the Presidential Elections Committee.
The committee said in a statement that the guidelines described the processes and regulations for the primary elections that would choose a presidential candidate for the general election in 2024.
The Electoral Commission (EC) is in charge of overseeing the elections and is fully responsible for making sure they are transparent, free, and fair. No one, including party officials and everyone else, is allowed to act against the EC and these rules.
The Presidential Elections Committee said, “The security actions lie completely with the police and access beyond security perimeters is restricted to Delegates, Members of the Presidential Elections Committee, Candidates, and their accredited agents. The Party’s Presidential Elections Committee was given a constitutional mandate by National Council to oversee the planning and execution of the Presidential Candidate election, according to the committee.
The committee added that there should be no camping of delegates, constituency-specific accreditation, and media accreditation. The committee also stated that there shall be no campaigning, canvassing for votes, or assembling of party members for any reason the day before voting.
“Voters are expected to freely enter the voting booth on their own. The physically disabled may receive assistance. Before entering the perimeter, a voter must wait to be cleared by queue control. At the voting location, no voter may wear attire bearing the color or likeness of a candidate (such as T-shirts, hats, or posters of candidates). Delegates are not permitted to enter the voting booth or screen in pairs or in groups.
Voting must take place outdoors, in full view of the public, rather than indoors. Unauthorized individuals are prohibited from entering the voting area. A delegate who has already cast their vote is not allowed to enter the voting area again. According to the committee, anyone caught telling a delegate who to vote for is guilty of an offense and will be removed by the police.