The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has urged interest groups for the impending internal elections, especially the presidential primaries who feel aggrieved regarding enforcement of the Code of Conduct to take advantage of the provisions of the party constitution and petition the National Complaint Committee for redress.
According to the party, the Codes were formulated in accordance with Article 18 of the Party Constitution and therefore applicable to all party actors and government appointees and provide a clear procedure for handling alleged breaches and non-enforcements of its contents.
It pointed out that holding press conferences to accuse the party of selectivity only serves to reinforce beliefs of division in the party as it seeks to retain power in 2024 to continue to deliver prosperity to Ghanaians.
General Secretary of the NPP, John Boadu, made the call at a press conference on the party’s upcoming internal elections on Friday 28th January, 2022 where he also announced dates for the various elections and the rules and regulations.
He disclosed that the party’s second-highest decision-making body, the National Council has approved dates for the impending international elections and are as follows:
Polling stations elections will be held from February 19 to March 5,2022 while Electoral Area Elections have been set for March 18 to March 20, 2022.
Chapter and branch elections for the party’s external branches will be held from April 15 to April 24, 2022, while the Constituency Annual Delegates Conference to elect constituency executives will take its turn from 22nd April 2022 to 24th April 2022.
The Regional Executives’ elections have been slated for May 20, 2022 to May 22, 2022 while the National Annual Delegates Conference to elect the national executives has been set for July14 – July 16 2022.
Mr. John Boadu warned only prospective aspirants are entitled to purchase Application Forms and stressed no prospective aspirant should be denied access to the purchase of applications forms.
Prospective aspirants who are denied access to purchase an Application Form, he said, may, through a petition, purchase Application Form at the Regional or National Secretariat of the Party.
He indicated that elections for the following constituencies have been suspended and these include Bawku Central, Assin North, Jomoro, Jaman South, Fomena, Savelugu, Techiman South, and Akwatia.
Read the text of the full statement below:
PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESSED BY THE NPP GENERAL SECRETARY, JOHN BOADU, ON THE PARTY’S UPCOMING INTERNAL ELECTIONS
Today’s Press Briefing, Ladies and Gentlemen, is dedicated solely to the internal matters of the Party. As you may be aware, the Party’s second-highest decision-making body, the National Council, met yesterday, 27th January, 2022, to deal with matters involving Party reorganization as we seek to position ourselves to retain power in 2024 to enable us to continue to deliver prosperity to the good people of this country.
To this end, the National Council, among other things, considered and approved modalities for the conduct of the Party’s internal elections at all levels. This Press Conference seeks to let you into these modalities and other related matters.
COMMENDATIONS FOR 2021 ANNUAL DELEGATES CONFERENCES
But before I proceed, I want to, on behalf of the Party, particularly the National Council, cease this opportunity to once again tKank our Party’s rank and file and individuals who have expressed interest to contest for various positions in the Party and their supporters, for respecting and wholly abiding by the directives of the National Steering Committee placing a complete ban on campaign activities at the 2021 Annual Delegates Conference held on December 19, at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium, in Kumasi.
We indeed proved that the NPP is a disciplined Party, and it is our expectation that we shall, in the same spirit, continue to respect and wholly abide by all Party decisions particularly rules and regulations for the conduct of our internal elections. It is not for nothing that we are the ONLY political Party in Ghana that has been able to successfully organize Annual Delegates Conference in all the 275 Constituencies and 16 Regions of the country, this year, despite the challenges posed by Covid-19.
MATTER relating to the code of conduct
We wish to remind all our members, interest groups and the general public of the Code of Conduct issued by the Party on July 27,2021, for pre-Presidential and Parliamentary Primaries ahead of the 2024 Presidential and Parliamentary Primaries, and to reinforce some of the provisions of the Code.
First of all, it has to be emphasized that the Code of Conduct, which was formulated in accordance with Article 18 of the Party Constitution, is applicable to all Party supporters and actors including Government Appointees; Ministers; Members of Governing Boards/Councils; Chief Executive Officers of Government Institutions; Members of Parliament; MMDCEs; Aspirants/Potential Candidates and their Supporters as well as ALL MEMBERS of the Party.
In view of recent agitations in some quarters regarding the enforcement of the Code of Conduct as it relates to the Presidential Primaries, the Party wishes to emphasize that the Code of Conduct, which is only supplementary to the provisions in the NPP Constitution, expressly provides clear procedure for handling alleged breaches and non-enforcements of its contents as the case may be.
We wish to encourage our members who feel aggrieved in one way or the other regarding the enforcement of the Code of Conduct particularly as it relates to the Presidential Primaries, to take advantage of the express provisions in the Code and petition the National Complaints Committee for the necessary redress, rather than holding press conferences to accuse the Party of selectivity.
RULES & REGULATIONS FOR POLLING STATION ELECTIONS
1. Polling Stations shall be held from February 19 to March 5,2022
2. Electoral Area Elections shall be from March 18 to March 20, 2022
3. There shall be constituted, a Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections Committee to oversee the organization of the Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections in each Constituency.
4. The Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections Committee shall be constituted as follows:
a) One Regional Representative appointed by the Regional Executive Committee who shall be the Chair;
b) The Constituency Chairman;
c) The Constituency Secretary who shall be the Secretary to the committee
d) The Constituency Research and Elections officer;
e)The Constituency Council of Elders Chairman or his Representative
f) The Constituency Council of Patrons Chairman or his Representative
g) The Constituency I.T Officer
h) The Member of Parliament or his Representative [For emphasis, this applies only in constituencies where the Party has sitting MPs and NOT orphan constituencies]
i) An elderly woman appointed by the Constituency Executive Committee
5. The Committee shall be responsible for the supervision and conduct of the Polling Station and Electoral Area elections across the Constituency within the scheduled dates.
6. The Committee shall, as part of its responsibilities, determine venues and specific dates for the conduct of the Polling Station and Electoral Area elections within the timeframe approved by the National Council as stated in Regulation (1) and (2) supra.
7. No member of the Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections Committee shall be eligible to contest in the Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections.
8. Application Forms shall be acquired from the Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections Committee at a cost of GH¢10.00 for polling station executives’ elections and GHc50.00 for Electoral Area Coordinators5 elections.
9. No prospective aspirant shall be denied access to the purchase of Application Form by the Committee
10. Where a prospective aspirant is denied access to purchase an Application Form, he/she may, through a petition, purchase Application Form at the Regional or National Secretariat of the Party.
11. A prospective aspirant shall be a known and active member of the Party in the polling station or electoral area he/she seeks to contest as the case may be.
12. An Aspirant shall be nominated by one (1) person and seconded by three (3) registered members of the Party, all of whom shall be in good standing and Party members at that particular Polling Station or Electoral Area as the case may be.
13. The Committee shall receive the Application Forms from prospective aspirants not later than three (3) days to the Polling Station and Electoral Area Election as the case may be.
14. Three (3) Passport sized photographs shall accompany each Application Form.
15. Persons who are qualified to contest or vote in the Polling Station and Electoral Area elections shall include any of the following;
>Party Members whose names are captured in the updated Polling Station Registers
>Card bearing Party Members who vote at the Polling Station they seek to participate in the elections
>Known and active Party Members whose Membership can be vouched for by at least two (2) known Party Members particularly executives. The known and active Party Members belonging to this category must reside and vote at the particular polling station they seek to participate in the elections
16. For identification purposes, voters shall use their Party Membership Identity (ID)Card, but where same is unavailable, National Voters ID will be admitted for the purpose of voting.
17.The Constituency IT Officer, who is a member of the Committee, shall, under the supervision of the other Committee members, key in the details of all the elected Polling Station Executives and Electoral Area Coordinators, into an electronic system that the Party has developed and made available to the various Constituencies.
18.The details of all the elected Polling Station Executives and Electoral Area Coordinators entered into the system shall be electronically transmitted to the IT Directorate of the National Secretariat and shall constitute the Polling Station and Electoral Area Album.
19. The Constituency IT Officer who effected the data entries shall print a hardcopy of the entries and submit same to the Polling Station Executives and Electoral Area Elections Committee, for the necessary verification.
20. A hardcopy of the verified data entries shall be lodged with the Regional Secretariat by the Constituency Secretary.
21.All the data entries and the pasting of photographs of elected Polling Station executives and Electoral Area executives, shall take place at a designated constituency collation centre to be decided by the Polling Station and Electoral Area Elections Committee.
22. The positions to be contested for are:
>Polling Station Chairperson
>Polling Station Secretary,
>Polling Station Organizer
>Polling Station Women’s Organizer and
>Polling Station Youth Organizer
CONSTITUENCY EXECUTIVES ELECTIONS
1) The National Council approved April 22, 2022 to April 24, 2022, as date for the conduct of the Constituency Annual Delegates Conference to elect Constituency executives.
2) The elections shall be supervised by a Constituency Elections Committee to be composed as follows:
>A National Rep appointed by the National Steering Committee (preferably a Regional Officer, a Minister or Deputy, a Government Appointee, MMDCE, a former MP, or a former MMDCE)
>A Regional Rep appointed by the Regional Executive Committee
>Chairman of the Constituency Council of Elders
>Chairman of the Constituency Council of Patrons
>A respected elderly woman appointed by the Constituency Executive Committee >• The Constituency Research and Elections Officer
>The Constituency IT Officer
3) A member of the Constituency Elections Committee shall NOT be eligible to contest in the Constituency elections.
4) Where any member of the Constituency Elections Committee intends to contest in the constituency elections, the Constituency Executive Committee shall appoint a replacement for him/her on the Elections Committee.
5) The Constituency Elections Committee shall be responsible for the vetting of all prospective aspirants.
6) Nomination Fee:
> Constituency Chairman – GHc500.00
> All other positions – GHc200.00
7) Only prospective aspirants are entitled to purchase Application Forms from the Constituency Elections Committee.
8) No prospective aspirant shall be denied access to the purchase of Application Form by the Committee
9) Where a prospective aspirant is denied access to purchase an Application Form, he/she may, through a petition, purchase Application Form at the Regional or National Secretariat of the Party.
10) The Electoral Commission of Ghana shall conduct the elections under the supervision of the Constituency Elections Committee.
11) The positions to be contested for are:
>Constituency Chairman
>Constituency 1st Vice Chairman
>Constituency 2nd Vice Chairman
>Constituency Secretary
>Constituency Assistant Secretary
>Constituency Treasurer
>Constituency Organizer
>Constituency Women Organizer
>Constituency Youth Organizer
>Constituency Nasara Organizer
CHAPTER AND BRANCH ELECTIONS FOR THE PARTY，S EXTERNAL BRANCHES
1. Chapter elections shall be held from April 15 to April 24,2022
2. The elections shall be supervised by a Chapter Elections Committee to be composed as follows:
>One Representative appointed by the respective Branch Executive Committee who shall be the Chairperson
>One Chapter Representative appointed by the Chapter Executive Committee
>One Representative appointed by the Branch Council of Elders
3. A member of the Chapter/Branch Elections Committee shall not be eligible to contest for any position in the Chapter Elections
4. An aspirant in the Chapter/Branch elections shall be a known and active member of the Chapter/Branch in which he/she seeks to contest.
5. Aspirants in the Chapter/Branch elections shall procure Application Forms from the Chapter/Branch Elections Committee at a cost to be determined by the Chapter/Branch Elections Committee in consultation with the International Affairs Directorate of the Party.
6. No prospective aspirant shall be denied access to procure Application Form by the Chapter/Branch Elections Committee.
7. The Chapter/Branch Elections Committee shall be responsible for vetting prospective aspirants.
8. The positions to be contested for are:
>Chapter Chairperson
>Chapter Vice Chairperson
>Chapter Secretary
>Chapter Treasurer
>Chapter Organizer
>Chapter Women Organizer
>Chapter Youth Organizer
9.Branch elections shall be held from May 20 to May 22,2022
10.The Branch elections shall be supervised by a Branch Elections Committee to be constituted as follows:
>One Representative appointed by the National Steering Committee who shall be the Chairperson of the Committee
>One Representative appointed by the Branch Executive Committee
>The Branch Council of Elders Chairperson
11.The positions to be contested for are:
>Branch Chairperson
>Branch 1st Vice Chairperson
>Branch 2nd Vice Chairperson
>Branch Secretary
>Branch Treasurer
>Branch Organizer
>Branch Women Organizer
>Branch Youth Organizer
>Branch Nasara Coordinator
12. The elected Branch executives shall appoint qualified persons to occupy the following positions:
>Branch Assistant Secretary
>Branch Communications Director
>Branch Director of Research and Elections
>Deputy Branch Women Organizer
>Deputy Branch Youth Organizer
>Deputy Branch Organizer
>Deputy Branch Nasara Coordinator
13.1n adopting these Rules and Regulations, the Chapter/Branch Elections Committee may with recourse to the National Secretariat, make the necessary modifications in order to suit their peculiar situations.
REGIONAL EXECUTIVES ELECTIONS
1.The National Council approved May 20,2022 to May 22,2022, as date for the conduct of the Regional Annual Delegates Conference to elect Regional Executives.
2. The elections shall be supervised by a Regional Elections Committee to be composed as follows:
>Two National Reps appointed by the National Steering Committee (one of whom shall be the chair and the other as the Secretary)
>Chairman of the Regional Council of Elders
>Chairman of the Regional Council of Patrons
>One Rep appointed by the Regional Executive Committee (preferably a Minister or Deputy, Government Appointee, MMDCE, a former MP, or a former MMDCE)
>One Rep of the Regional Parliamentary Caucus
>The Dean of MMDCEs in the Region
>The Regional Research and Elections Officer
>The Regional IT Officer
3. A member of the Regional Elections Committee shall NOT be eligible to contest in the Regional elections.
4. Where any member of the Regional Elections Committee intends to contest in the Regional elections, the Regional Executive Committee shall appoint a replacement for him/her on the Elections Committee.
5. The Regional Elections Committee shall be responsible for the vetting of all prospective aspirants
6. Nomination Fee:
Regional Chairman – GHc5,000
>All other positions — GHc 2,000
7. Only prospective aspirants are entitled to purchase Application Forms from the Regional Elections Committee
8. No prospective aspirant shall be denied access to the purchase of Application Form by the Committee
9.Where a prospective aspirant is denied access to purchase an Application Form, he/she
may, through a petition, purchase Application Form at the National Secretariat of the Party.
lO.The Electoral Commission of Ghana shall conduct the elections under the supervision of the Regional Elections Committee.
11 .The positions to be contested for are:
>Regional Chairman
>Regional 1st Vice Chairman
>Regional 2nd Vice Chairman
>Regional Secretary
>Deputy Regional Secretary
>Regional Treasurer
>Regional Organizer
>Regional Women Organizer
>Regional Youth Organizer
>Regional Nasara Organizer
NATIONAL EXECUTIVES ELECTIONS
1. The National Council approved July 14,2022 to July 16,2022, as date for the conduct of the National Annual Delegates Conference to elect National executives.
2. The Venue for the National Annual Delegates Conference, as decided by the National Council, is Accra.
3. The elections shall be supervised by a National Elections Committee to be composed as follows:
>Three Reps appointed by the National Executive Committee (NEC) one of whom shall be the chairman
>National Council of Elders Chairman
>The Director of Research and Elections
>2 elderly women appointed by the National Executive Committee
>The Director of I.T
4. Nomination Fee:
>National Chairman – GHc 20,000
>Vice Chairpersons – GHc 15,000
>General Secretary – GHc 10,000
>All other positions – GHc 8,000
>Special Wings (Nasara, Women and Youth) – GHc 6,000
CONSTITUENCY WHERE ELECTIONS HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED
>Bawku Central
>Assin North
>Jomoro
>Jaman South
>Fomena
>Savelugu
>Techiman South
>Akwatia
CONCLUSION
It is anticipated that all our members and stakeholders of the Party especially prospective aspiring candidates in the internal elections and their supporters would respect and abide by these rules of engagement in the interest of the Party.
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