NDC To Rake In Gh�10m From MP & Presidential Aspirants

The ruling National Democratic Congress is expected to bag a whopping GH¢10million or more as proceeds from the impending parliamentary and presidential primaries slated for November 7 this year.

The aL-hAJJ’s investigations on the upcoming primaries of the ruling party indicate that an average of five candidates will contest in each of the 275 constituencies, and taking into account the filing fees announced by party’s General Secretary, John Asiedu Nketiah, the party is expected to make huge fortune out of the primaries.

National Executives of the party last week announced that it will hold its presidential and parliamentary primaries simultaneously on Saturday, November 7, 2015 across the country.

Addressing a press conference in Accra last week, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah revealed that nominations will open on Wednesday, August 27, 2015 and close on Thursday, September 10, 2015 to make way for vetting and other processes.

He added that all members of the NDC with biometric membership cards would be entitled to vote in the scheduled primaries.

Filing fee for male parliamentary aspirants has been pegged at GH¢10,000, whilst women and the physically challenged are expected to pay GH¢5,000. However, all aspirant will have to pay GH¢1,000 to pick up a form.

Following last Wednesday announcement, prospective parliamentary candidates who were hitherto engaged in underground campaigns have openly started flaunting their posters on social media, with some of them confirming rumors of their intension to embark on a journey that they believe will take them to parliament.

Reports are that the impending primaries have heated up to the extent that in some constituencies, as many as ten candidates have declared their intension to pick nomination forms.

In the party’s strongholds, Volta and the three Northern regions as well as Greater Accra, several aspirants have responded to calls from their constituents to represent them in the law making house after the next elections.

Information available to this paper indicates that some activists have taken advantage of the party’s expanded Electoral College to launch their bid to kick out some veteran legislators.

Even in constituencies regarded as no-go-areas of the ruling party, reports are that, there are intense scramble amongst party loyalists to grab the parliamentary candidate slot on the ticket of the ruling party.

In the flag bearer contest, however, there are reports that President John Dramani Mahama is likely to go unchallenged as persons rumored to be oiling their political guns to square off with him have all rubbished such reports.

If this happens, then the party would only bag GH¢51000 from the flag bearer race whilst the parliamentary race is expected to attract an estimated 1400 prospective candidates.

Going by this estimated number, with an average sum for each aspirant pegged at GH¢7000, and GH¢1000 before picking the form; taking into account female aspirants and persons living with disability, the party is likely to rake in about GH¢10 million or more.