A contender of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) party chairmanship who has contended for four times, Mr Stephen Ntim, says his service to the party is unfeigned and unalloyed.
Addressing a press conference in Accra Wednesday, Mr Ntim said material inducements of all shapes, colours and forms are featuring prominently ahead of Saturday’s congress in Koforidua.
“Please accept anything that is offered to you, but do not allow those considerations to influence your decision to vote for Ntim,” he advised NPP delegates.
The fourth-time contestant for the national chairmanship of the NPP, Mr Stephen Ayesu Ntim, described as vote-buying the buses that his contender, Mr Freddie Blay, has donated to the constituencies on the eve of the party’s congress scheduled for July 6 to 8, 2018 at Koforidua in the Eastern Region.
Mr Ntim said the buses were symbols of “artificially engineered endorsement” for votes from delegates and emphasised his work and commitment to the party which had to be considered to give him the nod to serve.
One of Freddy Blay’s buses about to be removed from a container at the Tema port Wednesday afternoon.
Final engagement
At his last press conference in Accra on Wednesday, July 4, Mr Ntim said 16 years ago, he single-handedly donated 14 vehicles to the party.
Back then he identified a need and took care of it without making any promises to anyone or expecting anything in return.
He said every regional secretariat of the party received a vehicle from him, while four constituencies received one vehicle each.
“It is important to note that in those days, this modest gesture was unprecedented in the party,” he said.
Reward service, commitment
Other acts of service and commitment that he wanted delegates to consider in voting for him included his efforts in delivering to the party 13 new constituencies in the 2016 elections.
He said as a member of the national campaign team, under the leadership of Mr Peter Mac Manu, and specifically in charge of the settler communities project that targeted 50 constituencies and which was an innovation by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, he put his four pickups into the campaign.
He also bought 50 motorbikes for the 50 constituency coordinators, in addition to soliciting for 2000 bicycles to ensure the smooth running of the project, which was in the Western, Volta, Brong Ahafo and Ashanti regions.
“When the results were declared in December 2016, the party had won several of the 50 constituencies, but 13 of them were brand new constituencies<\_> Atebubu-Amantin, Tain, Dorma West, New Edubiase, Sefwi Wiawso, Sefwi Akontonbra, Jomoro and the Krachi East constituencies,” he told the media.
He said when he was put in charge of the middle belt in the 2016 general election campaign, he worked hard together with other executives to deliver the flagbearer position with not less than 96 per cent of the overall votes cast in the election to the President.
He pledged that when elected as the national chairman, he would ensure that the project would continue.
Mr Stephen Ntim described the purchase of buses as an attempt to “buy votes” from delegates considering the timing for the delivery of the buses. (Watch the video above]
But Mr Blay has insisted the plan for the buses is not a new thing.
Apply unwritten code of reward
Mr Ntim told delegates that the unwritten tradition of rewarding members for loyalty, commitment, dedication, long service and hard work had to be deployed at the congress grounds.
He said his service to the party had continued to date with the free printing of letter heads to all constituencies and the printing of complimentary cards for some officials.
Pledges
The fourth-time contender pledged to support the President to deliver on the campaign promises for the government to excel in meeting the expectations for more electoral wins.
He also pledged that identifiable component of growing the party, which included the polling/constituency party, the parliamentary party and the external branches of the party would be his focus when he came into office as chairman of the party.
He promised to work and strengthen the polling/constituency party who were mostly delegates who performed the leg-work of the party by way of “sweat equity.”
He also pledged a tighter collaboration between the party and Members of Parliament (MPs), while prescribing a new and better relationship between the party and external branches that would be far different from the independence of these external branches that existed currently.
“Distinguished delegates, I am pleading with you to trust me to do this, rely on me to do this, depend on me to do this and count on me to do this,” he told them.
He said propaganda messages targeted to destroy his bid would abound as the party went to vote; however, he assured all delegates that such messages would definitely not match up to his record of loyalty and commitment to the party.
“Material inducements of all shapes, colours and forms will also feature prominently in Koforidua. Please accept anything that is offered to you, but donot allow those considerations to influence your decision to vote for Ntim,” he urged delegates.
