Politics of Thursday, 23 October 2014

Source: Daily Guide

Ofosu Ampofo hits road

Residents of Koforidua and other parts of the Eastern Region woke up on Wednesday only to be greeted with posters of Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, also known as Bro Sammi Photo, former Minister of Local Government and Rural Development under the late President John Evans Atta Mills.

DAILY GUIDE gathered that the posters have a huge smiling portrait of Ofosu Ampofo, wearing a head gear in a nice shirt. They have the inscription ‘Vote Ofosu Ampofo for National Vice Chairman’ boldly written under an umbrella decorated in National Democratic Congress (NDC) colours at the left hand side.

Other inscriptions on the posters – which have already started creating some hullabaloo in political circles in Koforidua – include ‘Adwuma Wura’ and ‘The man you can trust.’

The posters were found firmly posted on walls and by the sides of bridges at Suhum, Koforidua, Somanya, Begoro, among other areas. Some had found their way on WhatsApp and in the social media.

Though the posters did not have ‘NDC’ written on them, they have the colours of the ruling political party dominating the upper part.

Mr. Ampofo is obviously eyeing the national vice chairman position of the NDC, having lost the Tema West parliamentary election by a slim margin to the incumbent MP, Irene Naa Torshie Addo.

However, Mr. Ofosu Ampofo, until his appointment as the Local Government and Rural Development Minister by President Mills, was the national organizer of the NDC.

Public Reactions

Scores of people who spoke to DAILY GUIDE on condition of anonymity expressed shock about Ofosu Ampofo’s intention.

One Mantey Way, a resident of Somanya said, “I’m surprised because he [Ofosu Ampofo] has contested for MP at Fanteakwa and Tema West and lost all, so what shows if he again goes for this one he will win?”

The emergence of the posters at Begoro in the Fanteakwa area, according to sources, had created panic and uneasiness among activists of the party as people were purportedly mobilized to destroy them.

Ofosu Ampofo’s Reactions

When DAILY GUIDE contacted Mr. Ampofo, he intimated that a group called‘Friends of Ofosu Ampofo’ came out with the posters.

He posited, “I have no idea about that, and haven’t instructed anybody to post any posters. I haven’t declared my intention yet but will come out within these few weeks to brief the media on that – whether I am contesting or not.