In an election that was characterized by tension, misunderstanding and the firing of a warning shot by a Police Officer to restore calm in the election zone at the Longford Hotel near Duase, an area in the Manhyia North Constituency, 185 delegates out of the expected 495 voted to retain Hon Collins Owusu Amankwah as the New Patriotic Party, (NPP) candidate elect for the Manhyia North.
With Kwasi Konadu who observers tipped to unseat the incumbent polling 171 to place second, jubilant supporters of the Hon Amankwah danced and sang to herald the retention of the incumbent at the end of the polls.
Surprisingly, the third candidate, Nana Osei Bamfo who before the primaries had boasted to having what it takes to unseat the incumbent placing a distant third with 129 votes, the way was clear for the incumbent to enjoy the day.
Mr Serebuor Quiacoe, the Ashanti Regional electoral officer backed by his staff declared the official results moments after the poll had closed and ballots counted.
The parliamentary primary which had suffered unprecedented Eight (8) times postponement, commenced around 10:40 am with the first person casting his ballot five minutes later to set proceedings in motion amidst tight security.
This unusual time, was despite the stipulated 9am the election committee headed by Madam Serwaah Derkye, a vice-chairperson in the Regional NPP Executive had earlier announced.
Clad in all white apparel, the incumbent was the last to be seen seated at the election zone as he embraced his fellow contenders with a forced smile and a tight-fist handshakes.
CHAOS:
However, before voting could end and the ballots counted, a neatly dressed lady who had approached the election zone to cast her ballot was accosted by one of the party agents indicating she was not elected to vote as a delegate in the recently held polling station election in the constituency.
This incident, created a tense atmosphere and before the electoral officers who were present at the scene as well as party executives could restore sanity, an unidentified policeman gave a warning shot sending all the feuding parties to a momentary state of calmness.
Speaking to the media later, Superintendent Donkor of the Airport Police Station disclosed the shot was fired to scare those that had planned to steal the ballot box away.
This, he said was the information he had received from his officer who shot furiously in the open air.
According to Supt Donkor, before the chaotic incident snippets of information they had gleaned pointed to such and all officers had been put on alert to prevent anybody from taking away the ballot box.
PROCESSION:
Immediately after the ballots of the third placed person had been counted after the poll, the incumbent was seen leaving the election zone after conferring with the former constituency secretary, Felix Ibrahim on the numbers left to be counted.
Wearing an infectious smile, Hon Amankwah with some of his aides who like soothsayers had hurriedly done the calculation left the scene before the official announcement was made by the Electoral Commission representatives.
They were later seen at a pre-arranged procession from the hotel grounds through the principal streets of Buokrom.
The team descended down the Krofrom route of the constituency and landed at the party’s headquarters.
Ostensibly to show to the regional executives that he had won the ticket as the Manhyia North candidate for the NPP, Hon Amankwah was left with wonder as none of the party’s representatives was present to welcome him.
Surprisingly, all the doors of the offices were locked and not even a bird could be found perching on the roof of the party office.
EXCLUSIVE CHAT:
In a labored but exclusive chat with the Ghanaian Observer Newspaper, Mr Amankwah noted his victory is nothing else but the work of God.
‘’My brother I am forever grateful to God for this victory and I owe it all to him because it is his own doing’’, Hon Amankwah with a tear in his eye stresse
