Amidst strong sentiment within the National Democratic Congress, NDC that the ruling NPP is preparing to win more seats and possibly rig the 2020 election, delegates are poised to retain the Greater Accra Regional Chairman.
“Mr Joseph Kobina Ade Coker, is likely to be retained with a landslide if he runs for re-election and the chief reason informing the desire to retain him is that, the party needs a strong man to stand up to the NPP’s alleged rigging agenda.â€
“Some of us have spoken to Ade Coker and told him that we will never forgive him, if he abandons us now that we are in opposition, especially when there are clear signs that Ghanaians are poised to vote out the NPP†Mr Philip Yankey, an Executive member of the Tema East Constituency has said.
Mr Yankey who was speaking to the Ghana News Agency on prospects of various Regional contenders in the party said Mr Ade Coker had more experience than other prospective candidates on account of his two-term experience as the Regional chairman of the Party.
“As Greater Accra Regional Chairman for the past two terms, Chairman Ade has very important experience that we need very much for 2020. Aside from the experience, as Greater Accra Chairman, we have seen what he is made up of. Ade Coker has it in him to lead a revolution if necessary.â€
Mr Yankey added that the incumbent Chairman was a resourceful person who spent a lot of his own money to sponsor party activities and that now that the NDC was in opposition, his help was needed more than before.
He claimed that following the NDC’s loss in the 2016 election, Chairman Ade Coker started working on strategies for a comeback for the NDC. “Those efforts will waste if he is not retained.â€
He said it was not clear if the incumbent Greater Accra Regional Chairman would run for retention, but some delegates had for some time now been impressing on him to run again and that Ade Coker had agreed to pick up his forms on Monday when nominations open.
Mr Clement Ababio, a delegate of the NDC in the Tema East Constituency, on his part said many delegates were gearing up to vote for Ade Coker simply because the people who were stepping up to contest him just do not have enough quality.
“I have heard that his prospective opponents include; Daniel Amartey Mensah, a former boss of LEKMA, Yahaya Kondow, our current Regional Treasurer and Emmanuel Nii Ashie Moore, former MP for Adenta. With all due respect, none of them matches up to Ade.â€
According to Mr Ababio, only Amartey had some amount of noticeable clout but even that it was not good enough for him to rally the whole region for victory. “Amartey will not be able to organise and strategise like Ade Coker.
He said “Mr Mensah lost against Ade Coker in the Regional Chairmanship race of 2014. After this, he quickly lined up to contest to become a national executive of the party and won. But just when everybody thought the former LEKMA boss had settled, he lined up again to contest the Parliamentary primary for Ledzokuku against then incumbent MP, Benita Sena Okity Duah.â€
He said Mr Emmanuel Nii Ashie Moore and Yahaya Kondow, the NDC’s current Regional Treasurer were not charismatic enough to carry the people along as the Party was in dire need of a Motivator, Listener and a resilient leader to garner more votes in 2020.