In a recent statement issued from the office of Mr. John Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, also known as “Alan Cash,” the now-former presidential aspirant of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) explains in greater detail the reasons behind his drastic actions.
Right up until his resignation, Kyerematen had considered himself a very marketable potential candidate in the upcoming presidential elections. He even referred to himself last December as someone who would make an “effective and successful president,” according to internet-based radio Joy Online.
Confirming the truthfulness to rumors of his decision to resign, Kyerematen appeared content and immobile in his separation from the recently headline-grabbing NPP. Of course, with elections looming in the near future, any party is subject to extra coverage in the Ghanaian media, but the NPP has commanded even more attention at the present time due to this politician’s decision.
The New Patriotic Party was created in 1992, and has had a rather tumultuous political history. The first member of the NPP to resign, Acquah-Harrison, cited shortcomings in terms of direction, among other things, as his reasons for abandoning the party to join the NDC.
Mr. John Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen was among the first few founding members of the New Patriotic Party nearly sixteen years ago.
But what prompted this abrupt resignation? In his statement, Kyerematen expresses distaste with what he calls a “calculated attempt” to put him in a bad light in reference to his party. In particular, he cited party disunity, and a failure “of the Party to take concrete action to address fundamental issues.”
His actions as of late may be described, at best, as wishy-washy and inconclusive. Upon resigning, the media immediately swirled with news of his apparent wishes to perhaps rejoin the NPP once again.
As reported by the internet-based Peace FM Online, Kyerematen was documented as requesting “the weekend” after his decision to “think about rejoining the party.” Inconsistency may be on his mind, but it was certainly made quite public with his back-and-forth politics in the last few weeks. This may have been the greatest reason behind his recent public statement.
Kyerematen is hardly a newcomer on the political scene in Ghana, and abroad as well. A practicing politician for over twenty four years, he is the current Minister of Foreign Affairs. He is also a member of the Council of Governors of the British Executive Service Overseas (BESO) in the United Kingdom, as well as a Board member of several organizations in Ghana.
He is a graduate in Economics from the University of Ghana, as well as holds a law degree from the same school. Kyerematen also is a Hubert Humphrey Fellow of the School of Management at the University of Minnesota, located in the United States.
When he lost to Nana Addo Dankaw Akufo-Addo in the December 22 National Delegates’ Congress, coming in second place, he made the decision to fully support his counterpart in his political campaign.
This decision showed his political seasoning and maturity, as well as garnered him loads of attention and praise for putting party unity above his own personal political aspirations.
Now it seems as though second place was perhaps not good enough for Kyerematen.
Furthermore, in an article in the Accra Daily Mail, reporters determine that this could be just surface problems that lead to even deeper divisions within the party, and that Kyerematen’s decision may just be the tip of the iceberg that goes downward into even greater fractions amongst the members of the NPP.
While it appears that former Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. B.J. Da Roche, made attempts at reconciling severed ties between Kyerematen and the rest of the Party, Kyerematen calls these attempts “inconclusive,” and unable to “resolve the matter at hand.”
In a last thought, Kyerematen hinted that perhaps the public will again see him in the political sphere. Indicating that he would work to play a role in the future, Kyerematen expressed what one can only imagine was a passionate desire to “bring hope and confidence to all Ghanaians, irrespective of their political affiliations, religious or ethnic background.”
With this last hint of his resurfacing amongst the politicians currently duking it out for the presidency, Kyerematen’s actions and statement raise questions about his intentions. He may just be the wildcard to watch out for, as he may decide to join another political party, or start his own, reminiscent of William Ofori Atta (Paa Willie) who abandoned the Popular Front Party (PFP) in order to create his own group, the United National Convention (UNC), in 1979.
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