Hassan Ayariga was just a mere flagbearer - Atik

The face of Hassan Ayariga, 2012 presidential candidate of the People’s National Convention (PNC), may not be new to Ghanaians, but to his Policy Analyst and a leading member of the party, the aftermath of last year’s elections makes him an ordinary politician.

Hassan Ayariga was elected presidential candidate of the PNC, with the aim of assisting the party to clinch victory in the general elections last year.

But prior to the elections, he was pitched against the 2012 presidential candidate of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, flagbearer and founder of People’s Progressive Party (PPP), Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom and President John Dramani Mahama during an IEA debate.

Following the debate, he seemed not to have stood the test of time as some members of his party begun to cast insinuations about his demeanor, particularly when he was thought of as a nuisance to the debate because of his persistent coughs to supposedly disrupt the NPP flagbearer.

Some critics believed he has proven beyond doubt that his sole aim on the IEA platform was to depopularize Nana Addo.

And to add salt to injury, he (Hassan Ayariga) managed to let down the hopes of the party when he couldn’t even attain the third spot in the presidential race.

The question has, therefore, remained; Is Hassan Ayariga, a PNC member or rather a sympathizer with the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC)?

Contributing to a panel discussion on Oman FM, Atik Mohammed, Policy Analyst and member of the PNC denounced Hassan Ayariga, claiming that he is not a member of the party.

According to him, the constitution of the party makes his flagbearer, a ‘mere’ person and perhaps he was only used for the purpose of the elections.

Atik Mohammed established on the station that “he (Hassan Ayariga) is not PNC. He was just a mere flagbearer. He’s mere because, after the elections, what is your role again? Our party constitution makes you mere…”

Also, volunteering information about the demeanor of the PNC presidential candidate, John Boadu of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) disclosed that after the IEA debate last year, Mr. Ayariga conferred with Nana Addo to find out if he was annoyed with him or not.

This, he noted, proves that Hassan Ayariga “doesn’t have manners. He does not know the difference between social distance and intimate distance.”

Flagbearers of the four political parties with representation in Parliament, last year, battled it out during the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) Presidential debates to prove to Ghanaians their political strength and also gain the support of the electorates.