Pro-New Patriotic Party (NPP) market Queens in the Ashanti region have vowed to vote against the party in the 2024 general elections if Chairman Wontumi still remains regional chairman.
The market women, led by Nana Yaa Fowaa Bayerehemaa (Yam market Queen) at Kumasi Racecourse are demanding Chairman Wontumi’s immediate removal from office due to his poor management of the party’s affairs and his recent alleged disparaging statement made against Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II during the party’s parliamentary vetting.
At a news conference Nana Yaa Fowaa said “we hold nothing against the New patriotic Party even though the party has not met our expectation in terms of development however, we can’t recognize Wontumi as the NPP regional Chairman, he must be removed from office’’.
She explained that, “NPP is Asanteman, Nana Akufo Addo’s father and his group won’t take NPP from Ashantis. He, Nana Akufo Addo the president of the republic could not win the elections without Asante so nobody will be entertained for disrespecting Otumfuo and Asanteman because of the small power that they control in the region in the name of party politics, never!,’’ she said.
Nana Yaa Fowaa Bayerehemaa stressed “Wontumi should go, we have taken our NPP, we can’t allow this ‘small boy’ to collapse our party. We have nothing to do with him again.’’
Adwenehemaa (Queen mother in charge of the fish market at the Kumasi Central market now operating from the Kumasi racecourse market also described NPP appointees and party executives’ style of governance as full of arrogance particularly Chairman Wontumi.
“We want to make this clear to you party members that Chairman Wontumi’s leadership style is collapsing the NPP. The party should sack him before things become worse this election year. How can you say you run a Kingdom in the Ashanti region calling yourself the governor of Ashanti? This means you do not recognize the supremacy of Otumfuo.
“We know only one Asante Kingdom which Otumfuo is in charge of. So he should leave the region as the NPP regional Chairman and go and rule his kingdom outside the Ashanti Kingdom and break the 8 there. A true Ashanti son will ever challenge Otumfuo’s authority. We know that you are not an Ashanti, you are Frafra and we accepted you because Ashanti’s are hospitable. You are not from Jachie, you wait, this is just the beginning.”
