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The Eastern Regional Minister Emmanuel Victor Smith has stated that, the National Democratic Congress will be gambling in this year’s elections if the party presents the Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur as Running to President John Mahama.

Mr. Smith noted this year’s elections are crucial to the party hence the party cannot afford to gamble with its fortunes in the December polls by presenting a running mate who does not have the edge in mobilizing the grassroots.

He said a running mate should automatically possess the qualities of president.

According to him, Mr. Amisah-Arthur may be a good administrator but he does not have the urge to move crowd and increase the NDC votes in this year’s election.

Mr. Victor Smith, who is also the NDC’s candidate for Abuakwau North constituency, was speaking in an interview with Asempa Fm’s correspondent Maxwell Kudekor in Koforidua on the nomination of the Governor of Bank of Ghana as the Vice President of the country.

He said the president has not announced to the NDC that Mr. Amissah-Arthur will be his running mate. He claimed Mr. Amissah-Arthur was nominated to help the President to complete the unexpired term of the former president Prof. J.E.A Mills, who passed on last week Tuesday, July 24th 2012.

He noted that, president John Dramani Mahama himself has not been confirmed as the flagbearer so he cannot nominate a running mate. The minister noted that, the party will go to congress in September and confirm President John Mahama as the flagbearer after which he can name his running mate.

‘I’m not comfortable, I can tell you clearly. I have made that point to leadership. Amissah-Arthur for the longer time is a weakness. It will not help us the way I see politics has been done in this country. We need somebody who will bring us a lot of votes, a person to complement the president, John Mahama has a lot of ground support but you need to partner him with another strong person who can excite people’, Victor Smith said affectionately.

‘If you ask this guy to go, I can tell you then we are gambling, then we have reached the gambling stage’ he reiterated.

Mr. Victor Smith noted that, there are many competent politicians who can partner the president in the elections and help win massively than the governor.

Without ridiculing the competence of Mr. Amisah-Arthur, he noted that, if the party wants to tap his knowledge, they should keep him in the office to run government business while the president goes on field with a running mate who can pull floating voters.

‘Someone may ask whether I am interested in the position of a running mate, I may aspire high in my political carrier, but I’m not saying it should compulsorily be me. There are other people who can fit into the partnership we are looking for’ Mr. Smith noted.

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