The incumbent Member of Parliament for Sekondi constituency, Papa Owusu-Ankomah, over the weekend won the New Patriotic Party's parliamentary primaries. The 'Home Boy' polled 45 of the sixty-three votes cast to beat his colleague lawyer and sole contestant, Gad Cobbinah, who bagged only eighteen votes.

This was after the third contestant, Kweku Sam Amoah, another legal practitioner, had withdrawn from the race at the eleventh hour to throw his support behind Gad.

In a brief address after his election, Papa Owusu-Ankomah thanked the delegates for the confidence reposed in him and called for their unflinching support and dedication to prove to skeptics that the Sekondi constituency still remains an NPP stronghold.

He assured them of providing all the necessary logistics to the various polling stations to ensure massive victory for himself and the party's flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo come December 7.

The fifty year old Sekondi MP and legal practitioner who contested and lost the NPP's flag bearer race in December, came into limelight in 1992 and has since worked tirelessly to raise the image of the constituency in the Western Region and the country as a whole. A number of difficult and controversial projects like the Sekondi-Essipong road and the Sport Complex were undertaken during the eight year term of Paapa, who is also the immediate former Minister of Science, Education and Sports.

In a related development, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, a thirty-five year old computer analyst polled 35 of the 78 votes to win the keenly contested Takoradi constituency primaries of the NPP. The other four contestants, Patrick Amoateng had one vote, Sweetie Sowah (2), David Aidoo (15) and Edna Jane Nyame 25 respectively.
All the defeated aspirants pledged their support to the winner to enable the party retain the Takoradi seat.

At Jaman South Constituency in the Brong Ahafo Region, Mahama Aphul was elected the parliamentary candidate to lead the party into this year's general elections.

Mr Aphul polled 63 votes as against 39 votes scored by his closest rival, Anna Nyamekye, the incumbent MP for the Jaman South Constituency who doubles as the Deputy Minister for Agriculture.

A total of 114 votes were cast at the election supervised by both regional and district representatives of the Electoral Commission.


Source: The Statesman