A former Member of Parliament (MP) for Asante Mampong, Ing. Francis Addai-Nimoh, says the New Patriotic Party (NPP) needs a new face to achieve its most touted “break the 8” mantra.
He said the party needed a presidential candidate who was a “new face” and could appeal to the masses to vote and retain the elephant in power.
“In my opinion, the prevailing circumstances of the party now require a new face as the next presidential candidate. The New Face to Win the 2023 NPP flagbearer election,” he stated.
He made the statement while declaring his intention to run for president on the ticket of the NPP in Accra yesterday.
According to him, a “fresh, new face, who has the needed experience and maturity within both the private and public sectors to bring hope and enthusiastic energy to serve the Ghanaian people, is all that the party needed to win.”
He indicated that the party must go into the next general election as unified front, and that could be achieved by a candidate who could improve and consolidate the gains made over the years, as well as provide equal and equitable opportunities to all their members.
“We want to be well-positioned to gain the trust of voters in the next national elections. As a highly motivated and well-organised team, we believe that we have what it takes to break the 8-year jinx, which has punctuated and – in retrospect – that occasionally brought unnecessary difficulties that have impacted the country in our electoral history since the onset of the fourth Republic,” Ing. Addai-Nimoh said.
He reiterated that the new face must, of necessarily, be a unifier, of unblemished character, have a history of service, and the ability to appeal to the electorates.
The presidential aspirant condemned factions that were emerging in the party, as it would stall their chances of winning the 2024 elections.
“It’s, therefore, crucial for all members to choose a candidate who is a relentless unifier – a leader who is not trapped in any factional exchanges,” he suggested.
Ing. Addai-Nimoh warned that although their main contender, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) had shown its readiness to “snatch” power come 2024, without any clear and viable ideas, the NPP must not give chances.
“There is no denying of that fact, as things have been standing till now, that either the NPP or the NDC may be poised to win the 2024 elections. However, with today’s announcement, as you will see over the next few months, we are fuelling a growing movement that is calling for a robust NPP leadership that will renew the party – a renewal that lead the country on a trajectory of prosperity.”
He also called on the NPP delegates to consider a candidate who is legally, physically and mentally fit to lead the party to maintain power.
Ing. Addai-Nimoh who came third in the NPP presidential race in 2014, urged the delegates not to look further than him, since he bore all those characteristics as a new face, unifier, experienced, legally, physical and mentally sound to lead them.
When given the nod, he said, his policies would hinge on education, health, infrastructure, employment and entrepreneurship, telecommunications, fundamental restructuring, accountability and transparency.
He told his audience that he was going into the contest with an inspiration from former President John Agyekum Kofuor, Late President John Atta Mills and the United States of America former President Barack Obama.
One of the party’s founding fathers, Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe, warned the delegates against false promises, and encouraged them to vote for the candidacy of Ing. Addai-Nimoh.
He alleged that failure on the part of the delegates not voting for Ing. Addai-Nimoh would lead to a bitter regret.
Background
Francis Addai-Nimoh studied Civil Engineering, obtaining his BSc Honours from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in 1993. Then, like now, fueled by his passion for professional transparency, he remains an incorruptible practical listener and pragmatic visionary for impactful socio-economic outcomes.
Early in his professional life, as a civil engineer, along with other responsibilities later undertaken in government administration and private enterprise, his varied experience has helped guide his different endeavours to achieve optimal efficiencies, while always striving to contribute to improving daily life in Ghana.
Francis had initially worked for a few engineering firms, gaining experience in data collection, road design, contract specification and construction supervision, bitumen production, and organizing training sessions to improve standards.
In 2004, the Ministry of Roads and Highways hired Addai-Nimoh as a senior engineer, tasking him with monitoring and evaluating all Government of Ghana road projects. These responsibilities offered him the opportunity to become increasingly familiar with the extensive geography and resources across the length and breadth of Ghana. Here he continued to develop an extended network with a wide variety of people actively involved in their communities, while enhancing his cross-cultural sensitivities towards the nation’s diversity.
Francis Addai-Nimoh, member in good standing of the Ghana Institution of Engineers, also holds an Executive Masters degree in Public Administration from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (2009). Previously, he had acquired knowledge and skills in International Procurement from the International Law Institute, Washington (2004), also learning Program and Project Management at RIPA, London (2006), and enhancing his Negotiation Skills, Contract Management and Administration at the Ghana Institution of Engineers (2005).
He has enjoyed developing leadership skills as far back as his school days, being elected to serve as Scripture Union President at Navrongo Secondary, Scripture Union President and Assistant Senior Prefect at Kumasi High School, and Students Representative Council President at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.
Addai-Nimoh’s first general elections campaign had him elected as Member of Parliament in 2008 for the Mampong Constituency in the Ashanti region, serving with the New Patriotic Party (NPP) until 2017. During this rise to prominence, he gained relevant knowledge and political insight while continuing to extend his network, namely by taking on a leadership role serving as Ranking Member of Parliament on the Select Committee on Environment, Science and Technology (2013-2017).
Although fairly unknown at first at that time, Addai-Nimoh ran in the 2014 NPP flag-bearer leadership race and placed 3rdout of 7 candidates, when President Nana Akufo-Addo became head of the NPP.
Since taking leave from government in 2017, Addai-Nimoh became Managing Director at Franstan Limited that he had established, overseeing construction projects and other endeavours involving the general distribution of supplies, namely bitumen.
Also propelled by his life-long dedication to charitable initiatives, as Chair of the Francis Addai-Nimoh Foundation (FAN Foundation), he also persistently championed impactful projects in education, food security and poverty elimination.
Addai-Nimoh is now READY, encouraged by a wide-range of country-wide support, to announce his bid for the leadership of the NPP and to serve as President of Ghana for a renewal that is to benefit all Ghanaians!
