Former Trades Minister Alan Kyerematen, who recently announced his resignation from the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) to run for the presidency as an independent candidate, seems to be carrying stalwarts of the party along.
At a press conference held at the luxurious Movenpick Hotel in Accra were some of these stalwarts of the NPP.
Although Kyerematen emphasised that his decision would not harm the NPP, the event drew several prominent party members.
Notable attendees included former Minister for Inner-City and Zongo Development, Alhaji Abubakar Saddique Boniface, Nana Ohene Ntow, former General Secretary of the party, S.K Boafo, a former Minister for the Ashanti Region, Gifty Klenam, former Member of Parliament for Lower West Akim, Yaw Buaben Asamoa, former MP for Adenta and former Director of Communications for the party.
Also present were Akwasi Osei, former MP for Ejisu, and a former Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, among other disgruntled party members who felt marginalised by President Nana Akufo-Addo’s and Dr Bawumia’s leadership.
The exact roles these individuals will play in Mr Kyerematen’s Movement for Change remain unclear.
In an interview, Mr S.K. Boafo, a member of the party’s council of elders in the Ashanti Region, explained that he joined the chorus advocating for Mr Kyerematen’s independent candidacy because he believed Kyerematen had not been treated well.
He stated, “Some of us went to jail under late President J.J. Rawlings, which led to the formation of the NPP. What is happening in the party is not what we went to jail for.”
During his press conference, Mr Kyerematen said, despite breaking away from the NPP, reassured the party’s rank and file of his continued respect for the party and commitment to the ideals of its founding fathers.
He emphasised that his departure would not dismantle the NPP but rather provide the party with an opportunity to engage in a Government of National Unity in the future, avoiding the risk of opposition without any gains in what is expected to be a challenging 2024 general election.
Mr Kyerematen urged NPP members to vote for their preferred NPP Parliamentary Candidate and vote for him in the December 2024 Presidential elections, with the aim of becoming the sixth President of the fourth Republic of Ghana