An aspiring parliamentary candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for Asuogyaman in the Eastern Region and Chief Executive Officer of the National Youth Authority (NYA), Pius Enam Hadzide, has expressed gratitude to the members of the party for having confidence in him and also calling on him to contest for the area.
Some members of NPP especially delegates from the Asuogyaman Constituency on Tuesday stormed Koforidua where the parliamentary vetting was taking place to throw their support for Mr Pius Enam Hadzide, who was going through the vetting process of the party.
Scores of the party members, some months ago picked the NPP parliamentary nominations form for Pius Enam Hadzide, and ambushed him at an event with the forms to call on him to contest on their behalf in the upcoming parliamentary primaries.
Pius Hadzide after going through the vetting process, expressed gratitude to the party members for their support and said he was poised to pick the sole ticket at the party’s primary to reclaim the seat for the party.
According to him, his outfit has facilitated the construction of an Astroturf for the youth and the building of a six-unit classroom block, books, amongst others; to promote education in the area, while he was not even a Member of Parliament.
Beyond that, he has championed skills training of the youth to make them employable and relevant to their communities.
He said it was incumbent on those occupying public offices to serve their people and create opportunities for them to thrive, adding that due to his benevolent gesture, the youth in the area were said to have contributed to picking the nomination forms for Mr. Hadzide to win the primary and contest on the ticket of the party.
He explained that his outfit had done a lot for the party, such as constructing and furnishing the constituency party office, among others which he wasn’t surprised that the party members saw and had faith in him by asking him to contest the seat.
He said when given the nod, his main focus will be to lobby for the roads in the constituency to be constructed, get jobs for the teeming youth, and out youth create opportunities for all in the constituency.
However, Mr. Enam Hadzide also stated that the New Patriotic Party like any other organization is made up of mere mortals who are fallible and would therefore encounter challenges. He indicated that regardless of such a situation, a member of the party should remain committed to supporting the party to accomplish its vision of breaking the 8.
He faces off with a former Director-General of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Paul Asare Ansah, and an administrator at the National Premix Fuel Secretariat, Nana Abrakwa Asare, in a three-horse race.
Despite the herculean task ahead, Mr Hadzide, also a former Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, said he was better placed to win the contest.
The Asuogyaman seat has been occupied by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) since 2017.
Any of the three who wins the primary comes up against the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP), Thomas Ampem Nyarko of the NDC, who is vying for a third term.