Mr Steven Ayesu Ntim, a leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has filed his nomination to contest the national chairmanship position of the party, with a clarion call on national delegates to fully endorse his candidature for a promising, viable and more visible NPP that is ready to recapture political power in 2012.
He told the Daily Graphic that the NPP was his faction, and that he would roll out his "Agenda 2012" calendar of events, which would guarantee a united front, focused and purposeful plan of action that would make the NPP more attractive to all in order to win Election 2012.
In an interview, after he had filed his nomination, he declared that "Steven Ntim has the req-uisite experience, having been the 1st National Vice-Chairman of the NPP and acted on many occasions as national chairman before, The output of my work from 2001-2005 stands out clearly for all to see and my contribution to the NPP campaign team of 2008 election speaks for itself."
"All I am saying to members and supporters of the NPP fraternity is that I have even become more politically mature, and so party members should give me the opportunity to, serve them dutifully," he stated.
He said "the NPP is going' to contest the hearts and minds of the Ghanaian electorate from opposition and there is no time for experiments, In opposition, you don't leave the work in the hands of novices, that's why I humbly think I, stand tall among all the contestants who have so far declared their intentions to contest the position".
He said if elected the national chairman of NPP, his focus could be on constitutionalism.
"I am going to allow the party's constitution to work and work freely, and if I should err, I rather must err on the side of the constitution as against using discretion," he told the Daily Graphic.
He said unity within the party would be his foremost priority, saying anything that could endanger unity of purpose within the party would be nipped in the bud.
In so doing, he said neutrality of his executives at the national, regional and constituency levels, particularly in the selection processes of parliamentary candidates and flag-bearership of the party, would remain uppermost.
Anything short of this, he said, was a recipe for chaos, destruction and division of the party which would lead the party no where to governing the nation.
"I am talking about unity and discipline that will run through the party from the grassroots to the top, a unity that will enable members and supporters to co-exist peacefully irrespective of who becomes a flag-bearer or a parliamentary candidate," he explained further.
He identified challenges of the perceived factionalism within the party and the party's ability to raise the needed funds for Election 2012 as immediate issues that would confront any elected national executives.
"I have the management skills to overcome these challenges," he stated, suggesting, for instance, that the party could rely on a large pool of small contributions to rake in huge monies.
He said he was embarking on a month-long intensive constituency by constituency campaign, starting today, Monday, giving assurance that he would visit all the trenches for total election victory.
"Already, reports coming throughout the country indicate that I'm way ahead. It is refreshing for me, and I'll keep renewing this strong bond of relations that exist between me and my party," he said.
Mr Ntim is the former National First Vice-Chairman, of the New Patriotic Party from August 2001 to December 2005; Founding Member, Brong Ahafo Patriotic Caucus (BAPAC) of NPP, Accra and Member, NPP National Campaign Committee, 2004.
He also chaired the Vetting Committee for selection of parliamentary candidates for the Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions in 2004; Member, Operations Committee of 2008 National Campaign Team and Communications and Networking Committee of the NPP National Council (2006 date).
Furthermore he chaired and served on several other ad hoc committees that addressed, among others, fund-raising and troubleshooting issues from 2001 to 2005 and represented the NPP at the Democratic Union of Africa (DUA) conference in Maputo, Mozambique, in 2001.
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