Regional News of Thursday, 19 February 2004

Source: GNA

NDC elects parliamentary candidate for Offinso North

Nkenkansu (Ash), Feb. 19, GNA - Mr Kwadwo Appiah-Kubi Junior, a 29-year-old tutor of the Jachie-Pramso Secondary School, has been elected unopposed as the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Offinso North.

This was at the party's constituency delegate's congress held at Nkenkansu on Wednesday.

Speaking after his election, Mr Appiah-Kubi pledged to lead the NDC to recapture the parliamentary seat of the area from the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP).

He stated that the people in the constituency made a mistake by voting for the NPP in the 2000 elections and this, "they certainly are going to correct come the December polls."

He said, "being popular with the people and knowing very well their problems, I can better represent and articulate their concerns and help find workable solutions to them."

Mr Daniel Ohene Agyekum, a leading member of the party, told members and supporters to attach more seriousness to the upcoming voters registration exercise.

He reminded them that it was only by translating their support into votes that they could help unseat the NPP government and save the nation from what he said was "the worsening economic hardships". Mr Agyekum, who said he was confident about the NDC's election victory in the December polls, called for internal peace and harmony within the party.

Mr Kwame Nti-Fordjour, Ashanti Regional Chairman, expressed the party's opposition to the arrangement where the Electoral Commission (EC) would not issue photo identification cards to voters in some regions on the same day of the registration.

Mr Nti-Fordjour said to help remove every shred of doubt about the genuineness of the exercise, the EC should look for more cameras so that voters would have their photo ID cards immediately after they had been registered.