A group calling itself Friends of Atta Mills has officially launched its campaign to support the President’s election as flag-bearer of the governing NDC in the 2012 general elections. The leaders of the group believe it has become necessary to support President Mills to lead the NDC due to his sterling performance in the past two years. Even though leaders of the group admit they have not spoken to the president about their intentions, they say they are certain that he will contest the party’s presidential primaries to lead the NDC once again. A former chairman of President Mills’ Ashanti regional campaign team and National Coordinator of the group, Godfred Anoma told Citi FM the president has already declared publicly that he will contest the primaries and therefore their decision to support him is not misplaced. He said President Mills is better placed to lead the party to victory and that selecting any other candidate could spell doom for the party. Meanwhile, another group, Friends of Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings has accused President Mills of convening a meeting to plot against their candidate, Mrs Rawlings. FONKA says the former First Lady was deliberately sidelined from the meting held at the Peduase Lodge between regional Chairmen, some national executive members and the President. Speaking to Citi FM, a leading member of the group, Dela Coffie said some officials around the president are the architects of the plot against the former First Lady. Mr. Coffie questioned why a national executive meeting will be held without the presence of an important executive member like Mrs. Rawlings who is a First Vice Chairman of the NDC. He revealed that the group’s “intelligence has proven to us that the meeting that was held at Peduase…was an occasion where party people [were] told again to go out there and malign the woman because they realize the woman is in pole position to wrestle power." “The party structures are no longer working. NDC party structures are no longer working. For the past one month, the party has never held the normal functional executives meeting that has been going on every Tuesday at the party headquarters,” Mr. Cofie stated. He said a few people have hijacked the party and are running it based on their own whims, adding “that is not the NDC we all fought for. The NDC has never been like this; it is President Mills’ leadership that is creating all these mess.” Story by Derick Romeo Adogla/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana