The Ashanti Regional capital, Kumasi, is the Garden City of West Africa because of its green environment and is also the city that hosts Manhyia, the palace where the Golden Stool conjured from heaven by Okomfo Anokye is housed.

Since the inception of the Fourth Republic, the Ashanti Region has remained the political hot bed of the country, living up to its name as the ‘World Bank’ of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), where majority of the votes go in its favour.

While the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has vowed to increase its votes to one million and add nine more seats to its existing four seats, the NPP is leaving no stone unturned to realise their target of 90 per cent of the valid votes and claim all the 47 seats.

With the exception of the 1992 election where the NPP boycotted the parliamentary election, the other political parties have had it tough in the region, with only the NDC managing to win some seats.

 

Highest

The Ashanti Region has the largest in almost all the figures with regards to the 2016 polls: highest number of registered voters for 2016, 2,868,027; highest number of polling stations, 5,190 out of the 29,021 for the entire country.

With the highest number of parliamentary seats, the NPP boasts 43, while the NDC has four. Four is the highest number the NDC has held in the region since the NPP joined the parliamentary election after the 1992 boycott.

The NDC seats are Asawase, New Edubiase, Ahafo Ano North and Sekyere Afram Plains, which the NPP has pledged to appropriate.

 

Campaign activities
Already, both parties have stepped up their campaign activities a notch higher. While the Regional Chairman of the NPP, Mr Bernard Antwi Bosiako, has been visiting communities and churches and preaching the ‘gospel according to Nana Addo’, the NDC is also trying to cover every space.

Within a spate of two weeks, both President John Dramani Mahama, who is also the presidential candidate of the party, and the Chief of Staff at the Presidency, Mr Julius Debrah, have both been in the region in an attempt to keep the momentum and ensure that the electorate do not forget about the party.

Both parties have been very active criss-crossing the region and canvassing for votes.

 

No campaign

The demise of the Queenmother of the Ashanti Kingdom, Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem II, in the middle of November this year means that no outdoor political activity could take place till she is buried, in accordance with the Asante Culture.

All political activities involving the use of loud speakers have, therefore, been banned. This has made the two parties to resort to house-to-house campaigns and sharing paraphernalia and radio messages.

 

One million votes

The NDC’s target of one million votes just like the NPP’s claim of all the 47 votes are both quite daunting.

The one million votes, is, however, not unachievable, judging from the past performance of the party in the region.

Year in year out, the NDC has been improving on its fortunes in the region and increasing its votes, even though the margin has been insignificant to cause any havoc.

 

Past results

In the 1996 presidential election, the NPP, led by John Agyekum Kufuor, polled a total of 827,804 votes, representing 65.80 per cent of the total votes, while Jerry John Rawlings of the NDC had 412,474 votes, representing 32.79 votes. Dr Edward Mahama of the PNC had 17,736 votes, which represented 1.41 per cent of the votes.

In 2000, however, the fortunes of the NDC, led by the late Prof. John Fiifi Atta Mills, took a nose dive. The numbers reduced from the over 400,000 votes to 286,012, representing 19.50 per cent of the votes, while the NPP under the leadership of Mr Kufuor increased its votes from the over 800,000 in the previous election to 950,597, representing 80.50 per cent of the votes cast. Kufuor won the presidential election.

Still maintaining its dominance in the region, the NPP again overwhelmingly won the presidential elections in 2004 under the leadership of Mr Kufuor, who was then going for his second term in office.

Although its performance was short of the 1996 results, it was an improvement on the 2000 election. The NDC had 398,572 votes, while the NPP garnered 1,404,336 votes.

The ruling NDC has seen a steady rise in its performance in presidential elections in the region since. In 2008, its numbers rose from the previous 398,572 to 437,243 and again increased in the following election, that is the 2012 presidential election, to 612,616 votes.

It must be stated, however, that in percentage terms, the party has never crossed the 30 per cent mark since 1996.

 

Agenda 90% popular votes

While the NDC is aiming at one million votes in the region, the NPP is on a mission to get 90 per cent of the popular votes in the region to enable the presidential candidate of the party to win the election.

The registered voters in the region is 2,868,027 for 2016 polls, therefore, a 90 per cent of this number translates into 2, 581,224 votes and that will leave the NDC and the other political parties with less than 300,000 to scramble over, that is if the party has done its homework well and will be able to deliver on its promise.

 

Unstable seats

The Daily Graphic can authoritatively term Ejura Sekyedumase as anybody’s game, though the NDC holds it. In the 2012 general election, the NPP’s Mohammed Salisu Bamba won with 21,461, representing 49.78 per cent to beat Mohammed Issifu Pangabu of the NDC who had 21,166, 49.10 per cent. There was a difference of just 295 votes.

The District Chief Executive, Alhaji Mohammed Bawa, is contesting on the ticket of the NDC and is counting on the advantage of his position, but December 7 will decide.

The Adansi Asokwa Seat has been held by the NPP since 1996, with the current occupant being Mr K. T. Hammond. Unfortunately, the MP is struggling to keep his head above water. Apart from the fact that he won the 2012 election with just 1,639 difference, a staunch and popular member of the NPP, Richard Oduro Anokye, who was disqualified under bizarre circumstances just before the primaries, is contesting as an independent candidate.

Several visits by the Daily Graphic teams to Adansi Asokwa revealed that if care is not taken the independent candidate might split the votes for the NDC candidate to take the seat on a silver platter.

The constituents clearly displayed their displeasure when Mr Hammond was introduced as the parliamentary candidate for the constituency during a visit by the NPP Presidential candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo.

Though the statistics are in his favour, the Asawase incumbent, Alhaji Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, is in a fight of his life to retain the seat for the fourth time. The NPP has fielded a ‘homeboy’ who is a Muslim and is as popular as the MP. He is matching the incumbent boot for boot. Besides, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the NPP, Chairman Wontumi, has vowed to take the seat from the NDC and has been pumping resources into the activities of the candidate to ensure that the objective is achieved.

The statistics indicate that Alhaji Muntaka polled 43,915, representing 57. 01 per cent, while the NPP candidate had 31,031, representing 40.26.

Another constituency which will be under the radar of political watchers is the Ahafo Ano North, which is currently held by the NDC’s Kwasi Adusei. He defeated the then incumbent MP with a total vote of 18,841. The NPP’s Richard Akuoko Adiyiah had 18,418. The difference between the two is 423. This is truly a dicey contest.

 

World bank

Constituencies such as Bantama, Nhyiaeso, Suame, Oforikrom and Kwadaso give real meaning to the NPP’s tag of the region as its World Bank. The 2012 statistics indicate that the Majority Leader maintained his seat with 60,829 votes, while Alidu Baba Dambasia managed 10,585. This is about 50,000 difference.

The NPP won the Bantama seat with over 40,000 votes; Kwadaso, 46,000 difference; Oforikrom, nearly 40,000 votes.