Mr Alan Kyerematen, who once sided with the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has revealed the maltreatment he and his supporters faced during his active days with the party.
He recounted his sufferings when he announced his resignation from the NPP during a press conference at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra today, September 25, 2023.
According to Mr Kyerematen, the attacks against him and his fan base have led him to part ways with the ruling party seeking to retain power in the 2024 general elections.
The former Trade Minister noted that the attacks began as far back as 2008 after the party’s 2007 presidential primaries.
He noted that despite stepping down for Nana Akufo-Addo (now current president) to be elected flagbeaer, he made was met with opposition as “there were very serious post-primary attacks on my supporters all over the country, and an open show of hostility.”
“Some of my supporters were victims of brutalities and continue to bear the scars of that treatment,” he added.
Mr Kyerematen, while announcing his recent resignation from the party at a press conference in Accra today, noted that he drew the attention of the leadership of the party, however, “my representations went unheeded.”
As a result of this, he decided to resign from the NPP “in protest against the blatant alienation of my supporters, orchestrated by elements aligned to the leadership of the Party.”
However, he returned to the party following talks with the Reconciliation Committee. Nonetheless, the attacks, he said continued unabated.
“The protests and reactions from the rank and file of the Party at that time from all over the country, compelled the then Chairman of the Party to constitute a Reconciliation Committee chaired by the then immediate past Chairman of the Party, Ambassador Samuel Odoi Sykes. The Committee upheld all my submissions and prevailed upon me to rescind my decision to resign, which I did, with the firm promise to address all the contentious issues I had raised in my notice of resignation.
“As a loyal member of the Party, I accepted the plea of the party leadership and joined the campaign team of then Candidate Akufo-Addo all over the country, providing exceptional support to his campaign.
“Unfortunately, however, all the promises made by the Party leadership were never fulfilled, and indeed the divisive and hostile attacks on my person and my supporters remained for several years thereafter, and have continued to date. It is common knowledge that any Party member who is associated directly or indirectly with Alan, is treated with disdain and considered an outcast,” he said.