A member of the Friends of Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings says the process to retain Vice President John Mahama as President Mills’ partner for election 2012 was unfair. As part of the NDC’s preparations for next year’s elections, the party’s national executive committee met on Thursday to endorse the Vice President as running mate. Since the meeting President Mills has explained that the successes of his government was the result of team work. He said the decision to retain John Mahama is based on the vice president’s contribution to the success of his government so far. But that meeting was not attended by the party’s founder nor his wife who resigned as first vice chairperson of the NDC to contest President Mills for the flagbearership slot in July. Friends of Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, FONKAR, is therefore accusing the leadership of the party of deliberately leaving the former first couple out of the meeting. A leading member of the group, Ernest Owusu Bempah told Joy News the party’s action is unacceptable. He said the party founder Jerry Rawlings was not aware that the NEC meeting was intended to select a running mate for President Mills even though he was given notice of the meeting. He said per the party’s constitution, the founder who is the chairman of the Council of Elders and the Council itself were to be consulted before a decision on the running mate is made but these were not done. He believes the action of the party executives means that someone is trying to sidestep the laid down regulations. “It means that somebody is trying to ignore the party’s structures and procedures. It means that somebody is not ready to fight for unity. It means that some group of people within the party want to get rid of [Jerry John Rawlings] from the party and then control the party hierarchy,” he alleged. He said “it is totally wrong and somebody is trying to tell us that they are ready to call the shots,” threatening that “it's not going to be the case because FONKAR has got a say at the moment. We are going to decide the 2012 elections and let’s not make [a] mistake…they say we came out with 3.1 percent and we are going to use it to determine who wins the presidency in 2012.” But National Organiser of the NDC, Yaw Boateng Gyan has debunked the accusations saying Jerry Rawlings was invited to the meeting except he was out of the country. “We had already scheduled this meeting and people met and we actually formed a quorum and the people who came were people who matter as far as this party is concerned.” He said the process was properly consumated and he therefore does not see anything wrong with the decision taken by the NEC. He therefore called the bluff of FONKAR to go ahead and do whatever they want to do. Mr Boateng Gyan said Mrs Rawlings had no business at the NEC meeting because she was no longer a party executive and therefore the idea that she should have been invited is untenable. He added that the meeting was emceed by Kofi Adams, a Deputy General Secretary of the party and an aide to the Rawlingses and therefore he does not understand why some elements continue to make such noises about the decision of NEC. He said the party does not recognize any splinter group after the congress and therefore the FONKAR is alien to the party. Story by Derick Romeo Adogla/Myjoyonline.com with additional files from Joy News