President Nana Akufo-Addo has expressed his grief about the New Patriotic Party’s loss of the Akwatia parliamentary seat in the 2020 general election.

According to him, he never imagined the party would lose the seat in last year’s December 7, polls.

President Akufo-Addo disclosed this at a durbar of chiefs and people of Akwatia as part of his Eastern regional tour on Thursday.

Having expressed his grievances, he reiterated the party’s resolve to deploy all available mechanisms to reclaim the seat in 2024.

"The NPP lost a lot of parliamentary seats we should have won in the 2020 elections. One of such seats which hurt me the most was the Akwatia seat.

"I honestly don’t know what happened but I was sad that Akwatia went to the NDC, but I can assure you that in 2024, we will do everything within our means to regain that seat."

Akufo-Addo’s desire to see the NPP reclaim the Akwatia seat is a reflection of the party’s desire to break the eight-year tenure enjoyed by political parties since the start of the 4^th Republic.

Background of the Akwatia seat

The Akwatia seat is regarded as one of the fiercely contested parliamentary seats in Ghana. During the 2016 general election, a stalwart in the opposition National Democratic Congress, Baba Jamal lost the seat to the NPP’s Mercy Adu Gyamfi, popularly known as Ama Sey.

The loss by the NDC’s former Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development came as a surprise to many political analysts and connoisseurs in Ghana.

However, after surprisingly unseating Baba Jamal, Ama Sey lost the NPP’s 2020 parliamentary primaries to Ernest Kumi, amidst a lot of tension and controversy.

Unhappy with the results, she requested for a recount of the ballot, with the excuse that some four deceased persons had their names in the electoral register, and were declared to have voted.

When her protests fell on deaf years, she decided to contest as an independent candidate.

However, she rescinded her decision after pleas from President Akufo-Addo, the then Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo, and other respectable traditional figures including the Okyehene, Amoatia Ofori Panin.

Unfortunately, Ernest Kumi lost the seat to the NDC’s Henry Boakye Yiadom, garnering only 48.50% of the votes as compared to Henry Boakye’s 51.50%. This was despite the support he received from some NPP bigwigs including Kennedy Agyapong and the party’s National Youth Organiser, Henry Nana Boakye.

Meanwhile, rumours suggest that Mary Sey is lacing her boots to contest the NPP’s parliamentary primaries, as the party plans to reclaim the Akwatia seat in 2024.