Even though the parliamentary primaries of the NDC are many months away, the paper has been told that, many of the prospective aspirants are touching base with delegates to woo them on their side.
One factor that promises to make the race interesting and exciting, is that, the current Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashaiman, the indomitable Alfred Kwami Agbesi, is said to be stepping down after three terms in office.
Agbesi, a lawyer by profession, who is also the second deputy speaker of parliament, commands a huge respect across the political divide in the constituency, but, according to the paper’s sources, he is no more interested for another term.
However, the question on the lips of many political watchers is “who takes over the set of Hon. Agbesi in 2016?”
The Ashaiman NDC is not bereft of potential candidates as there is a tall list of interested members eyeing the seat.
Some names privy to the paper are the present Municipal Chief Executive, Ibrahim Baidoo; one Abass Osabutey, a communications member of the party, and Ernest Norgbe, a procurement specialist with the NDAMO, and Adinortey Addison, a former MCE, who are all said to be interested in the seat.
The Ashaiman constituency is one of the safest seats of the (NDC) in the Greater Accra, but internal wrangling among parliamentary aspirants over the years sometimes threatens party unity and cohesion.
But it would be recalled that ahead of the 2012 general elections, the Ashaiman NDC was nearly torn into two, as one Tony Afenyo, a failed parliamentary aspirant, at the time, resigned from the party at the last hour and went independent.
The results obviously affected the NDC in the parliamentary, as Afenyo polled substantial votes from the NDC.
Mr. Agbesi polled 47,154 (49.89%), while Afenyo gathered 13,864 (14.67%). The New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate, Seji Amedonu, polled 32,650 (14.67%).
In the president results, President John Dramani Mahama polled 60,178 (63.73%) as against Nana Akufo-Addo of the NPP who gathered 33,725 (35.72%)
Akin to the year 2000, when similar wrangling within the Ashaiman NDC resulted in the current MP going independent; the outcome was disastrous for the NDC. The party lost the seat for the first time to the NPP.
It is against this backdrop that, some concerned NDC members in the Ashaiman constituency have called on the party hierarchy to ensure order and discipline ahead of the primaries later this year.
They say the leadership should not hesitate at all to crack the whip on erring aspirants who must have, in the past, indulged themselves in some undisciplinary acts that has had a negative toll on the party.
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