Koforidua, Feb. 27 GNA - Mr Alexander Agyena Sarpong, New Juaben South constituency chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has stated that the party was strong and solid and would surely retain the constituency seat come 2012 General Elections.

Mr Sarpong made the statement in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Koforidua on Friday in reaction to a publication in a private daily newspaper that the party had been divided in the constituency. The newspaper in its February 22 edition published an article with a caption, 93Gabby a common compromise NPP candidate for New Juaben South"= .. According to Mr Sarpong in the said publication the paper created an impression that the constituency had been divided and that many supporters of the party believed that Mr Gabby Okyere Darko, a lawyer and journalist, could be a compromise candidate to ensure that peace prevailed in the area. He denied that there was division among party faithful in the constituency and said they were preparing seriously for the 2012 general elections.

Mr Sarpong also denied a section of the publication that he prevailed upon his first vice- chairman, Mr Oteng- Adu, to resign his position and contest against the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP), Ms Bernice Beatric= e Boateng in the forth- coming parliamentary primary on April 30. "I want to state that the story was false and a figment of the edito= rs own imagination" he said.

The chairman said Mr Oteng- Adu was not a new person in the party and that he even filled nomination to contest the party's primary in 2008 but stepped down at the last hour. He said if Mr Oteng-Adu had decided to contest the primary this year h= e could not stop him from doing so since it would be against the rules and regulations of the party.

Mr Sarpong said the constituency executive was united and not divided as published by the paper and that whoever would emerge as winner in the primary would get the full support of them to retain the seat. He therefore described the publication as one of the many attempts by the newspaper to divide the rank and file of the party since 2008. Mr Sarpong said the Editor used his paper to play what he termed as "Asante-Akyem" ethnicity card to destroy the NPP and now that it did no= t work he was trying to use another agenda.

Mr Oteng-Adu on his part said he was surprised about the publication adding that nobody prevailed upon him to resign in order to contest the primary against the MP as the publication sort to create. He said he had been with the party since its formation in 1992 and kne= w everything about the party hence his decision to contest.