The Chief of Agortime Afegame in the Volta Region, Nene Mawumasro XIV, has assured the presidential aspirant of the opposition NPP, Nana Akufo-Addo, that there would be a change in the voting pattern of his subjects come 2016.
The region, described as the world bank of the governing National Democratic Congress, has traditionally voted against the New Patriotic Party since 1992.
Nana Akufo-Addo himself was a victim of the region’s partial voting trend when he led the NPP into two vital elections in 2008 and 2012.
But when the aspirant paid the Chief a courtesy call prior to his visit to the registration centre in Agortime Ziope, Nene Mawumasro XIV decried the neglect of his community over the years.
“The fact that you have travelled to Agortime to see us is very rare. We have been on the other side for a long time without any development or prosperity coming to us. We are going to make the change in 2016 and you will see the difference in the votes you will receive in 2016,” Nene Mawumasro XIV assured Nana Akufo-Addo.
Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s tour to the Volta Region took him to six registration centres in the Agortime-Ziope, Adaklu, Central Tongu and Akatsi constituencies on Sunday, as part of the monitoring exercise which has seen him visit so far a few registration centres in the Greater Accra and Central Regions.
The presidential aspirant congratulated all polling agents of the New Patriotic Party for doing a good job in protecting the party’s interests in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise, urging them to remain vigilant in the last few days of the exercise.
Accompanied by Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, his running mate in the 2008 and 2012 elections; John Peter Amewu, Volta Regional NPP Chairman; Nii Adjiri Blankson, former Mayor of Accra; Elizabeth Ohene, former Minister of Education; regional NPP executives, and some constituency chairmen of the party in the region, the Afegame E.P. Primary registration centre, located in the border constituency of Agortime-Ziope, was the first centre visited by Akufo-Addo and his team.
Witnessing at first hand, activities at this registration centre, some ten yards from the Togolese border, Nana Akufo-Addo took time to interact with polling agents of the party and EC registration officials.
The NPP polling agents told Nana Addo that “registration has been slow”, as they have recorded a very low turnout since the start of the registration exercise. Newly elected voters confirmed their eligibility through two residents who already have their names in the voters’ register, the registration officials told Nana Addo.
Akufo-Addo urged the NPP agents and EC officials to ensure that only eligible voters are registered in the 10-day exercise.
At Kpetoe, still in the Agortime Ziope constituency, Akufo-Addo called on Nene Noe Keteku III, the Chief of Agortime Kpetoe, who prayed to God for “a new environment to engulf the nation in 2016.”
Akufo-Addo then proceeded to visit the Agortime SHS registration centre, where he appealed to the NPP agents to ensure that the number of new voters recorded in the log book, provided by the party, tallies with the number of voters registered by the Electoral Commission. Additionally, he urged the NPP polling agents to make it a point to demand, from the EC registration officials, a copy of the daily print out of registered voters.
Moving to the St. Anthony’s Catholic Church registration centre in Adaklu Ahunda, in the Adaklu constituency, Mr. Paul Ege, the NPP polling agent, told Akufo-Addo that the process had been smooth, with only 23 persons registering at the centre since the commencement of the registration exercise.
The E.P Primary School registration centre located in Mafi-Kumase, and the Adidome District Assembly Hall registration centre, all in the Central Tongu constituency, were also visited by Akufo-Addo.
At the Pioneer Tobacco Company Hall registration centre in Akatsi, hundreds of residents poured into the registration centre upon learning of the arrival of Nana Akufo-Addo with shouts of “Naa Nana, Naa Sho?” and “No Nana No Vote”, a scene described by NPP regional executives as “never seen before.”
Nana Akufo-Addo told the gathering that, “Thus far, I have been to a few registration centres in the Greater Accra and Central Regions to monitor proceedings in the ongoing limited voter registration exercise. From what I have observed in the centres I have visited, the process appears to be proceeding smoothly.”
He continued, “However, we cannot tell if this situation pertains to all the registration centres across the country. When the exercise is completed on August 13, that is when we can analyse reports from all parts of the country and determine whether or not the registration exercise was a success.”
Akufo-Addo also took the opportunity to thank all well-wishers across the country who, in diverse ways, have been helping NPP agents at the registration centres and feeding them as well. He pleaded with them to continue their good deeds until the end of the exercise.
The Eastern Region, on Tuesday, August 12, will be the last region to be toured by Nana Akufo-Addo, ahead of the August 14 resumption of his campaign for the flagbearership of the NPP.
