Koforidua, April 10, GNA - Members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), in the New Juaben Municipality, are divided over the Presidential nomination of Mr Alex Asamoah, as the Municipal Chief Executive.

A section of the members who are against the nomination, claimed that when the party was in opposition, Mr Asamoah who was the MCE before the NDC Government went into opposition in 2000, dissociated himself from the party and did not support the party activities in the constituency. They, therefore, prefer Mr Ransford Owusu Boakye, the Parliamentary Candidate of the party for New Juaben South, in the 2008 general election.

The group, led by the Chairman of the New Juaben South branch of the party, Mr Andrew Awuku and some executive members, organized a press conference in Koforidua, on Thursday, to register their protest against the nomination. On the same day, another group, led by the New Juaben North constituency chairman of the party, Mr Owusu Boahene Koduro, with the support of some members of the Eastern Regional Executive, organized another press conference in the afternoon, to express their support for Mr Asamoah.

Speaking at the first press conference, Mr Awuku said when the party was in opposition, Mr Asamoah, the nominee, never visited the party office and even when he visited his brother, whose tailoring shop is near the party office, he did not visit the place to interact with the party functionaries. He said in 2004, when the branch approached Mr Asamoah for financial support, he said, "his money do not do politics" (sic). Mr Awuku said last year, Mr Asamoah was approached by the party to be its parliamentary candidate for the constituency but he declined with the explanation that he was not interested. He said Mr Asamoah rather proposed to offer his son who was in Europe to contest for the party but added that should he be defeated; the party should be ready to pay for the expenses that he would have incurred in the campaign.

Mr Awuku said, the nominee was not approachable and would not be able to maintain the high momentum and interest that the party had generated in the ordinary people of New Juaben, which the party wanted to capitalize on in future elections. He said it was Mr Ransford Owusu Boakye who offered to resign from the public service to contest as the Parliamentary candidate of the party and succeeded in securing the highest votes ever for the party. Mr Owusu Boakye should, therefore, be given the opportunity as the MCE for New Juaben.

Meanwhile the second group, who held a press conference in support of Mr Asamoah's nomination, said he had what it takes to develop the New Juaben Municipality. Mr Joshua Attah Mensah, Propaganda Secretary of New Juaben North Constituency of the party, who read a speech on behalf of his colleagues, extolled the virtues of Mr Asamoah. He said the disagreements that had characterized the announcement of the various nominations was normal but warned that if over stretched, it could lead to the erosion of the credibility that the people in the country had in the party.

Earlier, the Eastern Regional Organizer of the party, Mr Bismark Tawiah Boateng, explained the procedure that was adopted by the party for the nomination of the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives. He said there were many positions that those who were not nominated for the Metropolitan, Municipal or District chief Executives could be appointed to.

He explained that when nominations are made, often some people would kick against it while others would support it but under democratic conditions, what mattered was the majority decision. Mr Boateng denied that President Atta-Mills promised any parliamentary candidate an automatic qualification to become a District Chief Executive if the fellow should lose the Parliamentary elections. He said it was rather the national executive of the party that promised some candidates of the party in the Ashanti Region when it was difficult for it to get candidates for those constituencies. 10 April 09