Odike abandons UFP to launch UPP in April ; But Gyataba says good riddance. . .
Mr Akwasi Addai, popularly called Odike, the 2012 flag bearer of the United Front Party (UFP), has abandoned the party to form a new party, the United Progressive Party (UPP).
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The new party, with social democratic underpinnings, is expected to be launched in April (next month) to wrest political power in the 2016 election.
The new kid on the political block is currently awaiting certification from the Electoral Commission after it has successfully completed and presented the necessary documentation to the commission.
In a telephone interview with the Daily Graphic yesterday, Mr Addai, who is the Founder and interim National Chairman of the UPP, confirmed that the UPP had submitted its application to the EC and was awaiting provisional certificate to commence full-scale business as a mass political party.
With this confirmation, it is obvious Mr Addai has abandoned the UFP ship mid-stream to form the UPP, which has a clock as its symbol and “Yemere Nie’” (This is Our Time) as its slogan.
Background
The formation of the UPP comes after many months of over-deepening rift in the UFP between Mr Addai and the Founder of the UFP, Nana Agyenim Boateng, better known as Gyataba.
It would also be recalled that the Kumasi police recently caused the arrest of Mr Addai for allegedly threatening to eliminate the founder of the UFP, but Mr Addai, in an interview, denied that he had been arrested.
With this development, the battle between the two leaders over who controls the Kumasi-based UFP may come to an end.
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Forging ahead in peace
Asked whether he could not stand the might of Nana Agyenim Boateng in the struggle for the soul of the UFP, Mr Addai rather said to the contrary, “I have about 90 per cent of the UFP members and structures with me.”
He declared that “the UFP was Odike and Odike was UFP; without Odike there is no UFP.”
He told the Daily Graphic that the UPP needed peace and unity to be a viable, visible and strong party capable of implementing functional economic reconstruction programmes for Ghanaians.
He said that was what was preoccupying their actions.
Mr Addai, therefore, encouraged all floating voters and the Ghanaian electorate who were dissatisfied with happenings within their parties to join the UPP, which he assured, “is determined to bring economic relief to Ghanaians”.
“For now”, he gave the assurance, “we are just waiting for our provisional certificate from the EC to commence work as an issue-based recognised national political party.”
UFP reaction
When the Daily Graphic contacted Mr Agyenim Boateng for his reaction, he simply described the development as “good riddance to bad omen”.
I thank God that Mr Addai has deserted the UFP in peace, he stated, and pointed out that “so many people want to join us (UFP) but because of him (Mr Addai) they are reluctant”.
He admitted that every political party needed members to grow and would definitely frown on its members deserting it, but quickly added that “in the case of Mr Addai leaving the UFP, it was good riddance to bad omen”.
He, however, disclosed that the UFP would still pursue justice at the law court against Mr Addai in what he said bordered on acts of perjury.