Demonstrate patriotism, unity - Oquaye urges NPP flagbearer aspirants
A leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Prof. Mike Oquaye, has appealed to all flagbearer aspirants of the party to demonstrate patriotism and unity in their endeavours.
That, he said, required that the aspirants tell members of the party what they had done in their lives, in the party and what they intended to do for the country if elected as a presidential candidate of the NPP.
He was speaking at the launch of the party’s Patriotic Institute, established to nurture a generation of leaders and party faithful who possess a sound understanding of the NPP's history, ideology and constitution.
It will train party members on effective communication, political messaging, campaign strategy and grassroots mobilisation.
Nothing untoward
Prof. Oquaye said the party’s presidential hopefuls must learn from their predecessors, who said nothing untoward about their colleague aspirants.
He admonished them to be mindful of their utterances as they embarked on their campaign.
He recalled how all the aspirants joined hands with the late Prof. Albert Adu-Boahen to go round the country campaigning just as they did with former Presidents J. A. Kufuor and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, stressing: “We all went on one tangent.”
Prof. Oquaye said the country must be governed by men and women trained and who are qualified to lead a nation.
He reminded the party faithful that they had a tradition of respect, a tradition for the search for the truth and a tradition for self-emancipation.
Attacks
For his part, the General Secretary of the party, Justin Kodua Frimpong, appealed to all members, party executives, loyalists and sympathisers of the NPP to reduce the acrimonious tensions between prominent members of the Dankwa-Busia-Dombo tradition.
He admonished supporters of various potential aspirants to refrain from the use of provocative language and character assassination in the lead-up to the presidential primaries.
“In this era of social media, it is important not to wash our dirty linen in public. After all, we remain the sons and daughters from the womb of one giant elephant. Indeed, we are blessed today to be members of the NPP,” he said.
Institute
Touching on the Patriotic Institute, Mr Frimpong said participation in the mandatory foundational programme would be a prerequisite for all elected and appointed executives at national, regional, constituency and police station levels.
“It will also be compulsory for all presidential, parliamentary aspirants and candidates, national, regional and constituency party officers and party communicators, to all be part of the school,” he stated.
