Some leading members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), who have shown interest in contesting for the party’s flagbearership, turned their backs on the ‘unity walk’ initiated to ‘unite’ the party ahead of the 2020 polls.
They and the founder of the party, former President Jerry John Rawlings, were absent from the unity walk at Tarkwa on Saturday.
The party stalwarts, including former majority leader and current 2nd deputy speaker of parliament, Alban Bagbin; former Minister of Trade and Industry, Ekwow Spio-Garbrah and former National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) chief executive officer (CEO), Sylvester Mensah, as well as the immediate past Rector of the University of Professional Studies Accra (UPSA), Joshua Alabi, stayed away.
Their absence left the walk to earn a sobriquet ‘Mahama Unity Walk’ because it was only former President John Mahama and his supporters who undertook the exercise.
Not even former Vice President Paa Kwesi Bekoe Amissah-Arthur was present.
Mr Amissah-Arthur, who enjoys the support of Baba Kamara – former National Security Advisor – for the NDC presidential race, was also conspicuously missing at the Cape Coast walk.
It was unclear why he did not attend the two events staged ostensibly to bring harmony to the seriously divided party.
In his address at the event, Mr Mahama conceded that the party was polarized ahead of the 2016 polls, although he strongly insisted during last year’s electioneering campaign that the NDC was a united party.
I’m Not Aspirant
Former President Mahama blatantly told the NDC activists who have been endorsing him as the next candidate of the party for the 2020 general elections to focus on the party’s re-organization, particularly at the grassroots level.
“I have not said anywhere that I am contesting as president. The time is not due for that and we have lots of work to do. So today if I open my mouth to say I will contest or not, it will take our focus from the re-organization.
“I promise you when the time comes I will make my intentions known, but now let us all focus on the job we have at our hands,” Mr Mahama underscored.
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