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Former Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr. Kofi Konadu Apraku, is yet to overcome the shock he suffered at the recent special delegates� congress of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). Dr. Apraku was the last among the seven contestants who were vying for the flagbearership position of the party. He garnered only 10 out of the 737 votes cast, representing 1.36%. The aspirant, who has since been licking his wounds in silence, was compelled to react to reports that he was rushed to the hospital after the congress because he had a blackout. Speaking on Adom FM�s �Dwaso Nsem� morning show on Tuesday, Apraku expressed shock at the speculation, adding that for more than a year, he had not been to any health facility to seek medical attention, apart from visiting people on admission. He therefore challenged the credibility of the pro-National Democratic Congress (NDC) Al-Hajj newspaper and its claims, saying, �It is absolutely untrue that I had a blackout.� Dr Apraku initially declined to comment when he was asked whether his own coordinators failed to vote for him during the special delegates� congress � for which reason he did not get a single vote in certain regions. He however, ended up admitting �not just coordinators; I had proxy votes � over 10 proxy votes. People who couldn�t come to vote had given me their votes and asked that I look for people to cast those votes for me�I�ve been told they all sold the votes.� Shock The former MP for Offinso North was therefore shocked to the marrow saying, �There is not a single place where my coordinator did not have a vote.� Even though he claimed �there is a lot more to the results�, the disappointed presidential hopeful said, �I don�t want to get into it�I�m not going to worry about that.� After the special delegates� congress, Dr Apraku said some delegates had gone to see people to go and beg him for pardon. Sometime last Friday, spokesman for Dr Apraku, Ahmed Osman, who spoke on various radio networks, said the man was not himself when news of the polls started trickling in. Reason According to him, Apraku could not believe that some of his own campaign coordinators, especially those in the Upper West, Central and Western Regions who were also delegates, voted against him. He has since congratulated Nana Akufo-Addo � two-time flagbearer of the NPP � whom he described as a colleague and friend, on emerging winner of the first phase of the contest. He said he wished Nana good luck in the actual congress, slated for October 18, 2014. He proceeded further to accept the results of the special Electoral College elections held on August 31, 2014, whiles thanking all those who supported him during the campaign period and on the day of the elections. He has however, denied report that he is backing Nana Akufo-Addo for the ultimate slot of the NPP flagbearer. Dr Apraku crashed out of the first round together with former Information Minister, Stephen Asamoah-Boateng, who also obtained 13 votes, representing 1.76%, leaving Nana Akufo-Addo, to come first with 599 votes, representing 81.81%; Alan Kyeremateng with 59 votes, representing 8.28%; Francis Addai-Nimoh and Joe Ghartey tied it up with 21 votes each, representing 2.85% and Kofi Osei-Ameyaw garnered 16 votes, representing 1.90%. Showdown Kofi Osei Ameyaw, MP for Asuogyaman in the Eastern Region, who had 16 votes, has given a tacit indication of his intention to proceed to the next stage of the contest which he called a �showdown� when he issued a statement in Accra yesterday. �We have completed the first journey by God�s grace and just as we started, it is my prayer that the good God directs and guides us to our next destination,� he prayed.