The All People's Congress (APC) will retain the party's 2020 Presidential Candidate, Hassan Ayariga, as its flag bearer for this year’s general election, the National Organiser of the party, Ben Anderson, has said.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic in an interview, Mr Anderson said Dr Ayariga was the party’s best option and had the support of majority of the party members.
“Our candidate is the best so far in the country, and so majority of our party members are calling for him to be the leader of the party. It is only right to acclaim him as our flag bearer,” he said.
He said the party would acclaim Mr Ayariga as the party’s flag bearer for the 2024 general election on March 8, 2024, the same day the party’s national executive elections would be held.
Meanwhile the party has announced its road map for its internal elections ahead of this year’s general elections.
A statement issued and signed by the General Secretary of the party, Mordecai Thiombiano, announcing the timelines for the party’s internal elections after a recently held National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting said nominations for the party’s regional executive elections opened on February 1 and would close on February 27, 2024 with the elections to be held within the nomination period.
The statement further said that nominations for the party’s national executive elections would be opened from February 20 and close on March 2, 2024.
It said the election of the National Executives and the party's flag bearer would take place in Kumasi, the Ashanti Regional capital.
The party urged its members nationwide to partake in a procession through the principal streets of Kumasi on March 9 this year.
The procession, the statement said, would include paying courtesy visits to religious and traditional leaders, along with other stakeholders in Kumasi.
In 2020 Mr Ayariga contested the 2020 election as the Presidential Candidate of the APC with Frank Yaw Kuadey as his running mate and obtained 7,138 votes, representing 0.05 per cent, in an election which had 11 other candidates.
The others are President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP); John Dramani Mahama, National Democratic Congress; Christian Kwabena Andrews, Ghana Union Movement; Ivor Greenstreet, Convention People’s Party; David Apasera, People’s National Convention, and Asiedu Walker, an Independent candidate.
The rest are Kofi Akpaloo, Liberal Party of Ghana; Brigitte Dzogbenuku, Progressive People’s Party; Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, National Democratic Party; Akua Donkor, Ghana Freedom Party and Henry Herbert Lartey, Great Consolidated Popular Party.