Assemblymen, party officials and opinion leaders in Chereponi have expressed support for Hajia Zuweiratu Mada Nashiru following her nomination by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to be the next District Chief Executive of the district. Hajia Zuweiratu’s nomination was initially met by protests which became national news but residents in the district have thrown their support behind her.
In an interview, Alhasan Abdul Ganiyu, Assembly Member for the Wancheki Electoral Area emphasized that the community needs development and that they were ready to support Hajia Zuweiratu to succeed. He said there is no doubt about Hajia Zuweiratu’s credentials and having gone through the vetting process, had been proven to be capable of doing the job. He observed that Chereponi always accepted and endorsed the President’s nominees and was not about to depart from that tradition.
Abdul Rahman Sheriff, another Assembly Member, expressed happiness that a nominee with grassroots appeal had been chosen. He said all the three contestants whose names had been sent to Accra, from an initial group of twelve, were qualified and had demonstrated their commitment to Chereponi and the New Patriotic Party in various ways. He was confident that members of the Assembly would offer a ringing endorsement for Hajia Zuweiratu, as the constitution requires.
Akor Tahiru Mohammed, who is also an Assembly Member, urged all to exercise restraint and respect the decision of the President, who he said has the exclusive power under the constitution to appoint DCEs. He was of the view that those who had engaged in the violent demonstrations had already regretted and would now be ready to work with Hajia Zuweiratu in the interest of the party.
Fatima Yakubu, a leading member of the party and the deputy women’s Organiza in the district echoed these views, saying that all the contestants wanted the best for Chereponi and it was important to support the President’s nominee. She condemned the destruction of party property by the youth who were unhappy because their preferred candidate had not been chosen and pleaded for support for Hajia Zuweiratu to move Chereponi forward.
For his part, Alhasan Abdul Wahab, the New Patriotic Party’s constituency Youth Organiza praised Hajia Zuweiratu as a very good person who truly has the district and the party at heart. He recalled that she had been a dedicated and active member of the party who had campaigned very vigorously for the party in previous elections. He declared that he was ever ready to work with her to secure her nomination and pursue her development agenda when she is confirmed.
The Constituency Secretary, Idrissu Awal, himself a contestant, also weighed in with his support. He said even though he had hoped to be nominated, he had accepted the decision of the President and had thrown his weight behind Hajia Zuweiratu, who was the choice of the President. He said it was only a small group of people who were supporting one of the candidates who had engaged in the violent demonstrations. According to him, the party was taking steps to resolve any issues and to bring everyone on board with the President’s decision.
In a related development, representatives of the party have visited those who were injured in the disturbances, all of whom are recovering well. Chereponi was one of the several areas in the country, including Accra and Tema, where the announcement of MMDCEs were greeted with some protests. National Security had earlier issued a circular ahead of the announcement warning of possible disturbances and asking local security committees to prepare.
