Attempts by 2016 flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to distant himself from the ongoing regional conferences to oust the party’s National Chairman and General Secretary has ended up blowing his cover.

Nana Akufo-Addo’s rejoinder to the Daily Graphic’s May 25, 2015 publication alleging his complicity in the plot to push out Messrs Paul Afoko and Kwabena Agyepong has not only exposed his aversion for the two widely tormented national executives, but also exposed him as 'architect' of the internal rebellion against the duo.

The state-owned largest circulating newspaper in a recent front page story headlined “Regional Chairmen plan to oust Afoko, Agyepong?” reported that the twice failed presidential candidate was thought to be the brain behind the ‘illegal’ regional conferences to pass a vote of no confidence on Paul Afoko and Kwabena Agyepong.

In a swift response to the story, obviously to deny his involvement in the plot, Nana Akufo-Addo unwittingly revealed that although he had agreed with Paul Afoko and Kwabena on May 22, 2015 to convene a joint meeting of the National Executive Committee and National Council on Monday, May 25, his party’s regional chairmen informed him of regional conferences on the same day.

“The next day, May 23, at the funeral in Bolgatanga of the late Adams Mahama, he took the opportunity to inform the Regional Chairmen and others about the impending National Executive Committee meeting scheduled for Monday, May 25th. He was then informed by the Regional Chairmen that they had already scheduled a meeting of their respective Regional Executive Committees for the same Monday, May 25th, and that they, therefore, were requesting that on his return to Accra, he should inform the National Chairman of this and seek an adjournment of the National Executive Committee meeting.

On his return to Accra, on Saturday, May 23, he informed the National Chairman of this development, and urged the National Chairman and the General Secretary to make contact with the Regional Chairmen to sort the matter out so that the National Executive Committee meeting could take place as scheduled,” Akufo Addo's statement emphasized.

Following this explanation, many have been wondering why Nana Akufo-Addo could not instruct the regional chairmen to halt their regional meeting which is inferior to NEC and NC meetings. Even more worrying was the fact that all the regional chairmen per the party's constitution were also qualified to attend the NEC- NC meeting in Accra.

Others have also suggested that because Nana Akufo-Addo knew in advance the regional meetings was to start a process to chase out Afoko and Kwabena Agyepong, something he started from the very day the duo were elected; he left that to the two embattled national executives.

An NPP insider who does not want his name mentioned told The aL-hAJJ that “Nana Addo actually planned the agenda for the regional chairmen. If Paul or Kwabena had instructed the Chairmen to cancel their meetings, they would have ignored their orders. These are regional chairmen who have planned to pass vote of no confidence on the two of them, and you want the same person to instruct them to cancel a meeting they had planned to kick them out.”

“Nana Akufo-Addo knew that the regional meeting was to pass a vote of no confidence on the two so the best he could have done, if indeed he is not in agreement to their ousting, was to instruct the regional chairmen to put on hold or cancel that meeting,” the NPP source fumed.

Meanwhile, Nana Akufo-Addo explained that “to his surprise, on Sunday May 24, he received notice that the National Chairman had cancelled the National Executive Committee meeting scheduled for Monday, May 25, without any prior reference to him.”

But an NPP source explained that Paul Afoko canceled the May 25, NEC and NC meeting because he felt Nana Akufo-Addo had undermined and betrayed him and Kwabena, saying “Nana Addo betrayed Afoko and Kwabena Agyepong…Nana Addo was much interested in the regional meetings than the NEC and NC meeting. The regional meetings were to give him what he had been relishing for some time now so why would he be interested in NEC and NC meeting?”