
Anti-corruption advocate Vitus Azeem has urged former Ghana Football Association (GFA) boss Kwesi Nyantakyi to reconsider his decision to vie for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary primary in the Ejisu constituency.
Azeem cited Nyantakyi’s tarnished reputation following his implication in the Number 12 expose’ as a reason for this advice.
The Ejisu seat became vacant after the passing of sitting MP and Deputy Finance Minister John Kumah on March 7, 2024.
Consequently, the NPP has scheduled April 13 for the selection of a parliamentary candidate in preparation for a by-election overseen by the Electoral Commission (EC).
Nine individuals, including Mr. Nyantakyi, have submitted nomination forms to vie for the late MP’s seat.
However, Mr. Azeem suggests that while there are no legal restrictions on Mr. Nyantakyi’s candidacy, he should reconsider his ambition for ethical reasons.
“No matter, whether he has been prosecuted or not it is a dent on him and it cannot easily be wiped away. It may not be possible to legally bar him from contesting but as somebody interested in Parliament, he should not even consider contesting for an election.
“It is not even the fact that you come out to admit that you paid money but the mere fact that at the very beginning, he was the key player in the Anas investigations and even though he has not been investigated and prosecuted, he too has not been able to exonerate himself and has now implicated himself by admitting that he paid money to Anas to stop him from airing the expose because it contained information that will further implicate him.
“If he has a conscience, he should not stand,” he said in an interview on Accra-based Citi FM.