The Executive Director of the Danquah Institute, Gabby Otchere Darko, has dismissed suggestions that ex-President John Kufuor must intervene in the perceived frosty relationship between two presidential hopefuls of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Alan Kyerematen and Nana Akufo-Addo. The two stalwarts of Ghana’s biggest opposition party have been perceived to be arch rivals who are continually struggling to run each other chewy and strengthen their presence within the party. Ultimately each of them desires to become presidential candidate on the ticket of the party and the tight race with characterized the party’s national congress at Legon prior to the 2008 elections is likely to recur, analysts say. Whilst party officials have described the rivalry between the two as a healthy happening, there have been perceptions that it is getting out of hand. A member of the NPP, Dr Nyaho Tamakloe at a press conference earlier this week called for the former President’s intervention just when a former general secretary Dan Botwe had suggested the party’s national executive committee calls the two to order. But on Joy FM’s news analysis programme News File, Mr Otchere Darko said the suggestion for Mr Kufuor to step in and settle the perceived rivalry is rather unfortunate. “I find Nyaho Tamakloe’s statement unnecessary, absolutely unnecessary, and Dan Botwe’s statement, to me, is neither here nor there,” he said. According to the Danquah Institute boss, those on the mission to seek a mediation risk even deepening the rift the more, adding that most of the talk about misunderstanding between Nana Addo and Alan Kyerematen is an exaggeration. “The most important thing is that there is competition, there is going to be competition and they should see how they can keep it healthy. Of course you cannot legislate as to what everybody says everywhere but we want to see from the leadership – like those who go out there speaking – their words should not fuel the divisions; they should find ways to bring them together,” he related. On what he described as “the culture of endorsement” where some party members declare support for particular presidential hopefuls, Mr Otchere Darko said “there is nothing wrong with it.” Such endorsements are said have torched off misunderstandings in the Kumasi congress of the party where the former and immediate past chairman of the party for the Ashanti Region accused Nana Addo of having said the presidential candidate could not work with him. Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper Kweku Baako suggested that amidst perceptions that Mr Kufuor is coloured, perhaps it’s about time the former president rebranded. “It’s an appeal that I’ll make – because I think he is the most established leader of the UP tradition, the most successful and I tell you he is a huge asset for the NPP…So it is important that he packages himself very well must repackage himself very well,” he said. Mr Baako said although the Mr Kufuor could have a favourite, it is equally necessary for him to consider “how he goes about crafting his position in the party because the party needs him as a unifying force…When the campaigns start you cannot ignore and underestimate the impact that JAK will make for NPP.” “What record are they coming with onto the campaign? It still will be Kufuor’s eight-year record,” he indicated. Story by Fiifi Koomson/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana