By Yussif Ibrahim, GNA
Kumasi, Oct. 13, GNA – Mr Patrick Opoku Fofie, the Ashanti Regional Coordinator of the National Apprenticeship Programme, has pledged to adopt a grassroots-centred approach to organising the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Ashanti Region if elected as the Regional Organiser.
He said the party must maintain strong ties with its grassroots supporters, address their concerns and improve their access to opportunities, to sustain their commitment and strengthen its electoral fortunes.
Mr Opoku Fofie, who is aspiring to become the NDC Ashanti Regional Organiser, said political parties risked losing the confidence of their supporters when they failed to recognise their contributions and address their needs after assuming power.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Kumasi, he said the party’s organisational efforts must extend beyond election periods to ensure that members and supporters remained engaged and felt a sense of belonging.
He cited the Election 2024 as a reminder of the need for political parties to manage the expectations of their supporters, noting that disappointment over unmet promises could discourage people from voting or supporting the party in subsequent elections.
Mr Opoku Fofie said his priority, if elected, would be to strengthen engagement with constituency executives, polling station officers and ordinary party members to identify their challenges and work towards addressing them.
“I will not sit in the office and make calls. I will hit the ground, go to the grassroots and find out the problems of the party people and what they want,” he said.
He said he would work closely with constituency executives and government appointees to identify opportunities for party members, particularly young people, to apply their skills and improve their livelihoods.
He proposed documenting the skills, trades and professional competencies of party members across the region and linking them to available employment and other opportunities.
Mr Opoku Fofie said such an approach would help demonstrate that the party valued the contributions of its supporters and committed to their welfare beyond election campaigns.
He stressed that strengthening the party’s grassroots structures was essential to expanding its appeal beyond its existing support base.
He said the NDC must intensify public education on its policies, programmes and development record to attract floating voters and other residents in the Ashanti Region.
Mr Opoku Fofie proposed community-level engagements to enable residents to assess the development records of successive governments since 1992 and better understand the NDC’s policies and achievements.
He said the initiative would involve working with constituency organisers, youth, and women’s organiser, to take the party’s message to communities and encourage residents to communicate their concerns to party representatives.
He added that consistent engagement with the electorate would help the party build stronger relationships with communities and identify issues requiring the attention of the Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies and other public institutions.
Mr Opoku Fofie, who previously served as Deputy Constituency Organiser before becoming Constituency Organiser for Kwabre East, said his experience at the constituency level had given him an understanding of the challenges confronting grassroots members.
He said he believed that experience, coupled with his current role as Ashanti Regional Coordinator of the National Apprenticeship Programme, would help him strengthen the party’s organisational structures if given the mandate.
Mr Opoku Fofie said his ultimate objective was to consolidate the NDC’s support base in the Ashanti Region, attract new members and floating voters, and improve the party’s electoral performance ahead of the Election 2028.
GNA
Edited by Kwabia Owusu-Mensah/ Christabel Addo
Reporter: Yussif Ibrahim
Email: [email protected]