Central Region gets 12 new MPs
Twelve New Members of Parliament (MP) from 12 constituencies in the Central Region would grace Parliament when the house is dully reconstituted in 2017.
The new entrants are, Samuel Atta-Mills of the Komenda – Edina – Eguafo – Abrem (KEEA) Constituency, Mrs Barbara Asher Ayisi, Cape Coast North, Mr Elvis Morris Donkor, Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese (AAK), Mr Kingsley Ato Cudjoe, Ekumfi, Mr Alexander Abban, Gomoa West and Naana Eyiah, Gomoa Central.
The rest are, Mr George Nenyi Andah, Awutu Senya West, Mrs Cynthia Mamle Morrison, Agona West, Mr John Ntim Fordjour of Assin South, Mr Abraham Dwuma Odoom, Twifo Atti Morkwa, Mr Bright Wireko-Brobbey of Hemang Lower Denkyira and Mrs Abena Durowaa Mensah, Assin North.
Eleven of the twelve new entrants are all New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP’s while four of them are females.
There had been some interesting outcomes from Wednesday’s Presidential and Parliamentary elections in the Region.
Mr Samuel Atta Mills, younger brother of the late President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills broke the jinx of the KEEA seat which had been described as the sole preserve for “Doctors” since the inception of the fourth Republic.
This is because, Dr Ato Quashie occupied it from 1992 to 2004 followed by Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom from 2004 to 2008, Dr Joseph Samuel Annan, 2008 to 2012 and Dr. Stephen Nana Ato Arthur had it from 2012 to 2016.
Elsewhere in the Awutu Senya West Constituency, Mr George Andah of the NPP painfully defeated incumbent NDC MP, Ms Hannah Tetteh who is also the Foreign Minister by polling 28,867 votes.
From its voting pattern in the previous elections, the Region had underlined its “statement” that it was not a ‘sure banker’ for any political party and therefore was at liberty to swing to the side of whichever party it deemed capable of turning the fortunes around during elections.
Political analysts believed the Region was a determinant of whoever would win an election and therefore became the homegrounds for many politicians as they trooped there severally during the campaign period.
This time around, the NPP have benefited immensely from the 2016 general election in the Region.
Its Presidential candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo polled 496,668 of the total votes cast as against 405,262 by the Incumbent President John Dramani Mahama of the NDC.
The Region in addition, cemented its love for the Party by giving it 19 of its 23 parliament seats during which two die-hard NDC seats inTwifo Atti- Morkwa and the Ekumfi Constituencies were annexed.
The Twifo Atti-Morkwaa seat was won by Mr Abraham Dwumah Odoom, a former Deputy Minister of Health in the Kufuor’s administration with 21,231 of the 36,506 total votes cast after several attempts while Mr Kingsley Ato Cudjoe, an accountant, won the Ekumfi seat by 12,217votes.
Two of the only four seats won by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Region were the ones retained by the Regional Minister, George Kweku Ricketts-Hagan in the Cape Coast South and his Deputy, Queenstar Pokuaa Sawyer in Gomoa.
The party had 16 seats in the run up to the elections and was confident of winning four additional one but shockingly lost 12 of them to the NPP.
Some big shots in the Region including Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Mrs Hannah Serwaa Tetteh became prey to the wind of change.
A former Regional Minister during the Kufuor administration, Dr. Stephen Nana Ato Arthur also lost the KEEA seat to Mr. Atta-Mills.
Six of the sixteen women who contested for the 23 parliamentary seats in the Region got the nod to be in the next Parliament.
Source: GNA