The vetting process for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) national level elections has been completed. The campaign is heating up and will only get better and more bitter in the coming days. With new and old faces, it will all square out on election day. Among the five candidates for the chairmanship race is Stephen Ntim. This is not his first, nor is it his second. It was not his third and not his fourth. It is his fifth time and many are asking what at all Ntim wants in the chairmanship race.
Mr. Stephen Ntim has placed second in the national chairmanship race on two occassions. He was second in the controversial election that brought in Paul Afoko in Tamale. In the last internal election, Ntim again got second place to Fred Blay. And just like a fish that is being trapped by its bait, Ntim is sure it is time for him to fly after placing second on two occasions.
Will Ntim get the ticket that will enable him to fly this time around? Are there factors that always militate against him still present?
Why did Ntim fail in his four attempts?
Many have pointed accusing fingers at the current President. The factionalism of every political party is what has haunted Ntim all these years. Ntim is from the Kufour-Alan Camp, and that camp has been dormant ever since the assumption of office of the current president.
In 2005, it was all for Ntim, except for one camp that favored Peter Mac Manu, who happened to be the campaign manager of the President in the 2016 and 2020 elections. It did not end well for Ntim in that election. In 2010, Ntim could not convince all sides to come to him as the President and his team went in favour of the President’s childhood friend, who happened to be Jake Obetsebi Lamptey, and the story ended in defeat for Ntim.
Ntim’s hopes were high in 2012, but the President’s side went with Fred Oware, and this paved the way for an intruder like Paul Afoko to sail through, and Ntim had to wipe his tears and wait.
It is said that Ntim and his folks thought things were favouring them from the President’s side following his appointment as the Board Chair of the Land Commission in 2016. This did not help either, as in the 2018 election, the president’s party went to support one Alhaji Short. They later realized that Alhaji Short could not do the magic and switched camps to Fred Blay, and he won and Ntim came second.
The odds are even higher against Ntim than before.
The odds are high against Ntim from all directions. First, two heavyweights who were part of his 2005 campaign are running with him for the same position. They are Stephen Asamoah Boateng and Professor Ameyaw Akumfi.
It could be that his camp felt he could not do the job and are trying new ones. This will surely weaken the Ntim’s camp and harm him dearly.
Secondly, from the polling station elections to the regional elections, the supposed Alan boys have lost disgracefully. They are the ones that will prepare the grounds in the polling stations, constituencies, and the regions that will enable Ntim to take off and land well.
Thirdly, the NTIM camp suffered division after the 2018 election. Two of them were said to have indicated that Ntim is not the right man for the job. They say he is not a “unifier” and cannot do the job well.
There were also leaked audios which implicated Ntim. One of such recordings quoted him as having said, “I am not fighting for anybody but fighting for my heart’s desire.” They say this confirms the personality of Ntim, for the Bible says the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Ntim hopes to stand on the slogan of the party for the 2024 election, which is breaking the eight. But he has not broken the five. How can he help in breaking the eight?
Ntim’s experience is unmatched.
The experience of Stephen Ntim is unmatched. He has a long list of experience, which you can find at https://stephenntim.org/about/. He has been first vice chairman and a member of the national campaign team, among others.
We wish Stephen Ntim well and plead with the delegate to at least consider how he suffered and reward him with the chairman’s ticket.
