The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has not received an official apology letter from its former chairman in the Klottey Korle constituency, Nii Noi Nortey; Nana Obiri Boahen, Deputy General Secretary of the party, has said.

Mr Nortey on Wednesday May 3 asked President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for pardon, having rejected his advice not to run as an independent candidate during the 2016 parliamentary election.

Nii Noi had won the NPP’s primary to contest for parliament but his main contender Philip Addison challenged the result of the polls, which was subsequently overturned. Mr Addison subsequently won the re-run of the primary.

Mr Nortey, unhappy about the outcome, contested the seat as an independent candidate despite numerous calls on him by some party bigwigs including Nana Akufo-Addo and former President John Kufuor to rescind his decision.

Nii Noi in a television interview recently rendered an unqualified apology to the president for going solo.

Reacting to Nii Noi’s apology on Accra News on Thursday 4 May, Mr Boahen noted that the party had not received any letter to that effect from the embattled former party executive.

He said: “He [Nii Noi] hasn’t written any letter to the party to officially apologise for his actions. He was a party member but by the rules if you decide to contest as an independent candidate you cease to be a member of the party, and he did just that.

“He was advised against it, even President John Kufuor and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo spoke to him to rescind his decision but he didn’t listen.

“So if he says he is sorry, you don’t apologise on radio or TV. He needs to write officially to the party… If he has written to Nana Akufo-Addo, I cannot hold brief for Nana Akufo-Addo…but he has to write and if the party receives the letter, the National Executive Committee will meet and decide the way forward.”