NDC Rejects DCE Nominee

Daily Guide�s independent investigations have revealed that members of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Ahanta West constituency of the Western Region are preparing to reject one Peter Essien, whom they alleged a prominent chief in the area had presented to the President to be appointed as the DCE for the district. Assembly members told Daily Guide that a prominent chief who had in the past meddled in politics had allegedly presented a person to President Mills, against the wish of the party faithful. �This great chief should abandon his stool and contest the constituency, regional or national chairmanship of the NDC, rather than always contacting big shots and influencing decisions of the party in Ahanta West�, three constituency executive members of NDC, who did not want to be identified, told Daily Guide. According to investigations, the chief, who is a close pal of President Mills, had presented the name of Peter Essien and was doing everything possible so the President would nominate him as DCE for the Ahanta West District Assembly. �Master that is why the President did not name anybody from Ahanta West when calling out names of some nominees for DCE last week. But if President Mills does not go by what the regional and constituency executives have proposed, there will be massive demonstration culminating in an overwhelming majority of us defecting to other parties�, five activists of the NDC stressed. According to Daily Guide�s findings, Peter Essien allegedly has a criminal record and was a kingpin in the Butre chieftaincy dispute in the Ahanta West. A certain chief told the paper that Peter Essien was once remanded into prison custody. Most of the executives said the President should thoroughly investigate Peter Essien or else the candidate would suffer a humiliating defeat on the day of confirmation. It was gathered that the constituency chairman of the party, in collaboration with the regional executives, had already presented three candidates for the position of DCE, namely Mohammed Arthur, the Ahanta West District Director of Non-Formal Education; Okumi Andoh, a lecturer at Takoradi polytechnic and Joseph Nelson, Western Regional Coordinator of the National Youth Employment Programme. Majority of the people tipped Nelson, whom they claimed was humble, committed and led the 2008 NDC campaign in the constituency, as the next DCE, but many of them expressed disgust at the choice of Paul Gyimah, the constituency chairman. Meanwhile, NDC party executives in the constituency have allegedly vowed to demonstrate against Peter Essien if President Mills goes ahead to nominate him for the position of DCE since the NPP members in the area allegedly know of his criminal record.