Akwatia, July 31, GNA - A section of the supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Party (NDC) in Akwatia constituency of the Eastern Region have declared their support for Mr. Basil Ahiable, an independent parliamentary candidate for the area. At a well-attended press conference at Akwatia on Thursday which was addressed by some leading members of the two parties in the constituency, Mr. Edward Apeadu Ntow of the NPP said they had realized that the party did not bring any improvement into their living conditions but rather, it had polarized the people to the extent that it became difficult to mobilize them for any activity to improve their life-styles.

"We have voted on party lines from 1992 to date without anything to boast of, " Mr. Apeadu Ntow stated, adding that, the constituency cannot continue in this way hence the need for an independent candidate in the person of Mr. Ahiable who is vibrant, vocal and can ease the existing inter party rivalry in the constituency. Mr. Sampton Osei Appiah, Communication Director of the Ahiable campaign team pointed out that the living conditions in the constituency could best be described as reaching catastrophic levels after the closure of the Ghana Consolidated Diamond Limited (GCD) due to lack of maintenance.

"The most significant thing worth mentioning about this press conference is the fact that for once, we have supporters of the two major parties within the constituency coming together to rally behind an independent parliamentary candidate," he stated. Mr. Appiah noted that the paraphernalia of the various parties displayed at the press conference attested to the noble innovation, which in their estimation, would go a long way to unite the polarized people of the constituency. Mr. Ahiable, who is a contracting and procurement operations manager, for a world-class multinational company holds MBA in Finance from the University of Ghana, and a member of Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (UK).