Member of Parliament of Ledzokuku Constituency, Dr Bernard Okoe-Boye, failed to retain his seat during the 2020 elections as he lost to NDC’s candidate, Benjamin Ayiku Narteh.
Some of his constituents claimed that Dr Okoe-Boye who was also the Deputy Minister of Health lost partly because he failed to attend funerals and naming ceremonies in his constituency.
Read the full story originally published on December 13, 2020, on Ghanaweb
General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, John Boadu, says the concerns of the electorates who voted against Dr Bernard Okoe-Boye should be taken seriously and not be downplayed.
According to him, as custodians of the party, it is imperative that they work hand in hand with government policies that will favour the people they serve, whilst making adjustments to make sure policies do not affect the people negatively.
John Boadu was reacting to the reasons why Dr Okoe-Boye lost his seat on Peace FM’s Kokrokoo Morning Show
Kwami Sefa Kayi, host of the show read text messages from Okoe-Boye’s constituents who were claiming the MP refused to attend funerals and naming ceremonies when invited to.
They further claimed that the people of Teshie had voted against Dr Okoe-Boye because he refused to go to funerals, and when he did, he contributed less to support the bereaved family.
Others claimed he didn’t now allow them to celebrate Homowo which fell in the covid period.
The last straw, according to some of the constituents was when Dr Boye denied the indigenes to hold the grand durbar that usually climaxes the Homowo festival due to the Covid protocols and ban on social gatherings at the time.
“One of the accusations against Okoe-Boye is that he doesn’t attend naming ceremonies and funerals and even when he does, his donations are not heavy enough. Also they say Okoe-Boye didn’t allow them to celebrate Homowo. Remember Okoe-Boye took covid personal and didn’t allow them to have their grand durbar during the Homowo”, Kwami Sefa Kayi read on the show.
Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, a deputy Health Minister and incumbent NPP Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ledzokuku constituency lost his seat to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Parliamentary Candidate, Benjamin Ayiku Narteh.
His defeat came as a shock to many people, who took to social media to share their disappointment in the people of Teshie for voting against him.
Benjamin Ayiku Narteh polled a total of 55,938 votes whilst Dr. Okoe Boye had 54,072 votes in the constituency
