The National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for the Weija-Gbawe Constituency, Felix Odartey Lamptey has said he is ‘fired up’ and ‘entirely confident’ he will win the seat despite the 2020 election polling gap of more than 14,000 votes with the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the constituency.

Mr. Odartey Lamptey made the eye-catching announcement on a raft of different policy areas in his recent media engagement as a parliamentary candidate but sought to weave them together under a common theme; "change is due".

Speaking to the host of the Voice TV morning show, Felix Odartey Lamptey said “I can confidently tell you that, come 2025 Felix Odartey Lamptey will be the next member of parliament of Weija-Gbawe constituency”.

Felix Odartey Lamptey was elected as the new NDC parliamentary candidate for the 2024 parliamentary elections after beating competition from five other aspirants including his predecessor, Cleland Nii Aya Ayison.

His party, the NDC is struggling to close a polling gap with the NPP in the Weija-Gbawe constituency but, asked what his message was to constituents who have given up hope of winning, Odartey Lamptey said “I can tell you, we are doing something different, it is going to be business unusual, we have started going to the people, talking to the people and the people have realized that there must be an alternative because for 20 years the NPP cannot show any developmental project - how can you award a contract to a contractor to construct a school at Tetegu in July 2019 and till date, you have abandoned the school".

"Are these people the people we can trust in our community into their hands?", he quizzed.

"We are going to go to the people with facts and figures and let the people know the full picture of Weija-Gbawe. The NPP has held the Weija-Gbawe seat for nearly two decades, but it is struggling to provide developmental projects for constituents in that constituency", he added.

The Weija-Gbawe Constituency is the only constituency in the Weija-Gbawe Municipal Assembly.

The assembly was carved out of the Ga West Municipal Assembly in November 2007 with the Legislative Instrument (LI) 1867.

Since its creation, the Weija-Gbawe Constituency has seen rapid urbanization but that has not been matched by infrastructure growth, especially in road, drainage, and water supply.

The lack of a good drainage system has contributed to flooding during downpours and also any time the spillways of the Weija-Dam are opened to spill excess water.

Many of the roads in the constituency are in a bad state, and when it rains it compounds the situation, most often leading to chaotic traffic situations.

A lot of communities in the constituency are in darkness due to malfunctioning street lights.

The majority of inner roads leading to people’s homes and the drainage system are inaccessible whenever it rains.

There is also no market at Gbawe, Topbase, Weija, Gonse, and Tetegu as a result, residents had to travel to the only Mallam Market in the constituency before they could make purchases of the various foodstuffs they needed.

Although the Weija-Gbawe constituency is the home to the Weija dam, the Pambros Salt Industries Limited, West Africa's largest shopping mall, the West Hills mall, and China Mall, amid plenty, the constituency is poor.

Change is due:

Felix Odartey Lamptey has said he is poised to rescue his people and has already started an aggressive campaign, moving from shops to shops, worship centers, eateries, and house-to-house to solicit votes ahead of the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections.

Felix Odartey Lamptey believes the NPP has failed the people of Weija-Gbawe and that there is an urgent need for the constituents to vote against the NPP.

"A new leadership is coming and we are going to ensure that we take proper steps to ensure the people of Weija-Gbawe will have a comfortable life and a better society. I will show leadership by being the first to speak on their concerns. I will be very aggressive about propagating their concerns and lobbying for them to get their needs met", he said.