The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) John Boadu says the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party can handpick parliamentary candidates for the 2020 elections in events where they are unable to hold their primaries.
The NPP has had to suspend their parliamentary and presidential primaries due to the ban on public gathering as a result of COVID-19.
They are racing against time as the elections will be held on December 7th 2020.
He says the National Executive Committee (NEC) has the power to decide who represents the party as a parliamentary candidate and that may be an option on the table.
“Assuming this gets worse such that it is impossible for us to have primaries at all and the EC insist they can put in place some social distancing protocols to make it possible for us to vote on December 7 and we can’t hold primaries due to ban on public gathering, the National Executive Committee of the party can take a decision as to who becomes a candidate in which constituency for our party, they are the final authority concerning who represents the party. Their decision will be made based on dynamics on the grounds facts and our own arrangements. I have even received a letter from Fomena MP that he will not contest, so the emphasis is that the NEC has the right to determine who represent the NPP”, he told Joy News.
Asked at what point the NPP will opt for such a decision Mr Boadu said it the determination of the time to file to contest by the EC that will inform their decision.
“If you check the election calendar, you have 30-90 days to file for the elections, so the EC determines when to file so that will enable us to make a decision. So if for instance filing day for us is in early September it means if things remain the same or get worse in June, July or August then NEC will devise a way of determining who represents the NPP”.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) suspended its parliamentary primaries which was originally scheduled for April 25, 2020, to elect parliamentary candidates in constituencies where the party has sitting Members of Parliament ahead of the 2020 General Elections.
The decision to suspend the primaries was taken a National Steering Committee meeting held on Tuesday, April 14, 2020, due to the ban on social gatherings as part of national efforts towards the containment of the Covid-19 epidemic.
