Politics of Friday, 29 July 2011

Source: GNA

Aspiring CPP candidates in Western Region holds press conference

Takoradi, July 29, GNA 97 Some aspiring Regional Executives of the Convention People's Party(CPP), in the Western Region, have called for an immediate commissioning of an independent election committee to oversee the re-opening of nominations for the Regional delegates congress.

Addressing a press conference in Takoradi on Friday, the aspiring Regional Youth Orgniser, Mr Eric Seedof Asiedu, said the abrupt ending of the regional delegates' congress last Saturday was as a result of poor organization and dormant leadership by the outgoing regional executives.

He said the outgoing regional leadership failed to embark on an adequate publicity on the congress as well as, frequent changes of venue and lack of communication to the delegates. The aspiring regional executives therefore recommended that, all regional contestants should go through vetting processes, which should be supervised by the independent election committee. They also indicated that, issuance of membership cards should be decentralized at the constituency and regional levels but verification and confirmation can be done at the national level. This, according to them, would prevent infiltration of persons with bad intentions and criminal records from vying for positions in the party.

They also blamed the recent distraction of the regional delegates' congress on the national executives of the party, saying the membership cards are issued at the national level with a code, after which the card is sent to the respective regional offices and subsequently to the constituency level before being handed over to the prospective member.

Mr Richard Amoako, an aspiring regional organizer, said the regional offices of the party should open from Monday to Friday to enable prospective contestants and party members to seek for information.

He criticized the outgoing regional executives of trying to muzzle aspirants from contesting them in the congress hence their deliberate attempt to hide the nomination forms from them. "Opening of nomination forms were shrouded in secrecy and nomination forms filed by contestants were kept in the custody of the regional Chairman", he opined.