A one-term Member of Parliament (MP) for Akwatia Constituency, Baba Jamal, has clarified that he is not running away from the seat for fear of failure as speculated.
Baba Jamal, who lost the 2016 elections to Mercy Ama Sey by a 5,528 margin, said he willingly bowed out to preserve his integrity and on the advice of his mother.
According to him, a day after he lost the elections, he visited his aged mother who was broken by his defeat and urged him not to return to the seat.
He revealed for the first time in an interview on Adom TV that his mother told him with teary eyes to allow someone else handle the affairs of Akwatia since he has done his best for the constituency.
“My 88-year-old mother, for the first time I saw her broken. When I visited her a day after the election she told me ‘Baba, you have served Akwatia diligently, don’t go back to that seat”.
According to the former MP, the words affected him and on that very day, he went publicly to declare he has parted ways with Akwatia constituency.
But for his mother’s advice, Mr Jamal who described himself as a fighter said he would have made a comeback to snatch the seat and make the New Patriotic Party unpopular in their own stronghold.
He further revealed that he resonated with his mother because for a record which is unmatched and having served diligently, he expected better.
In his opinion, it is better to leave honorably because as a political stalwart and a lawyer, he understands political seasons and knows when to bow out.
“It is better to leave with dignity than be stagnant with people who felt I was being imposed on them because I am from Nima and contesting at Akwatia. I saw a few resistance within the party. I still lived to my honor and served like I am mandated to do.”
He believes his exit from Akwatia does not erase the obvious contribution he has made in the constituency and Ghana as a whole.
He is ready to extend similar service to the Ayawaso East constituency where he has shifted to.
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