A flag bearer aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Boakye Agyarko, has said his over 40 years unblemished record of serving the NPP makes him the best person to lead the ruling party to victory in the 2024 general election.
He said as the party looks for a new leader to succeed President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, he is the best person to lead the party to that historic third consecutive victory in the general election.
“I have an excellent record of service to this tradition for over 40 years without blemish to be able to lead this party with a good understanding of its ethos of history and its layout to be able to take it in my hands and nurture it and continue to a fuller maturity,” he said.
Mr Agyarko, a founding member of the NPP, who was also the campaign manager for the 2012 general election and the Policy Adviser for the 2016 campaign that brought the NPP to power, said he had the zeal, the passion and the energy to serve his country at the highest level.
He was optimistic that his long service to the party would find favour with the delegates to grant him the leadership of the party.
New leadership style
The flag bearer hopeful, who was speaking in an exclusive interview with the Daily Graphic at his residence in Accra, said what he was bringing on board was a new leadership style that was committed to transparency, decisiveness and inclusiveness.
He said he would prioritise all projects that were initiated since 1992 but were left unattended to and complete them for the satisfaction of Ghanaians for them to know that the promises that were made to them by the political class had been fully fulfilled.
He said if all these projects were completed, it would “improve our situation and our credibility as the political class and citizens of this country would respect our new promises”.
Interest
He said all the flag bearer aspirants who had expressed their interest had the capacity to do what they intended to do but he was presenting himself as a unique person who had worked with the people in the trenches to build the party to this far.
“Considering my commitment and service to this party and the tradition as a child of this tradition from 1978 and having consistently served this party in various capacities and having worked with the grassroots of this party as a campaign manager and policy advisor over many years, I think it gives me a certain edge of knowing into details this party, its traditions, its ethos and makes me thick,” he stated.
Mr Agyarko said his training in economics, banking and finance gave him that edge to solve the problems of this country such as unemployment, underemployment, underinvestment in infrastructure and adding that he had the ability to manage the fiscals of the economy.
Unifier
Mr Agyarko said he had what could bring everybody on board and not tear the party apart.
He described himself as a unifier and someone who had empathy for the members of his party and the nation as a whole and would ensure their welfare and well-being.
“Generally, I feel that I have displayed to the party many a time that I am accessible, that I understand the issues, that I know the party well and have served long enough to know the people inside this party and I think that it is one of the things people feel comfortable about me,” he said.
He said President Akufo-Addo did not win the presidential primary because he was second in that contest with former President Kufuor but because of his hard work, service to the party and the fight for democracy and the fundamental rights of Ghanaians.
“So I believe that this party will continue to examine the record of service of all of us and make their determination accordingly,” Mr Agarko stated.