It appears flagbearer hopeful for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Alan Kyerematen may not be welcomed by all during his constituency delegates durbar in the Ashanti Region.

On Tuesday, July 28, 2023, the former Trade Minister announced his decision to return "home" to engage the over 35,000 cherished kingmakers of the NPP from July 28 to August 2, 2023.

The week-long campaign has however been pushed forward to start on August 7 and end on August 12.

Alan Kyerematen is expecting a rousing welcome but that may not the case.

On July 30, a Tweep criticised the aspirant for failing to remember the Ashanti Region during his time as a government official.

You never did anything for asanteman Always thinking of Accra— The Untold African Story (@ourafricanst) July 30, 2023

According to the user, @ourafricanst, Alan Kyerematen "never did anything for Asanteman" as he was "always thinking of Accra."

It is unknown if more others hold the same assertion.

But is the concern raised substantive? In October 2022, when Alan Kyerematen held the position of Trade Minister, the Ashanti Region was a beneficiary of 21 out of the 125 factories under the One District One Factory (1D1F) initiative.

Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei-Mensah, noted that about 30 more factories were at various stages of completion.

Alan confident about Ashanti Region

During an interview on Angel FM on Tuesday, January 31, 2023, Mr. Kyerematen expressed the viewpoint that the party necessitates a candidate capable of securing no less than 80 percent of the votes in the Ashanti Region.

The ex-Trade Minister further stated that he possesses the capability not only to secure the party's support by over 80 percent of votes in the Ashanti Region but also to amass a substantial number of votes from the strongholds of the major opposition party, the NDC.

“We are not just looking for a flagbearer, we are looking for someone who can help the NPP retain power... Everybody knows that the Ashanti Region is the backbone of the NPP… And so for a difficult election, which I perceive is going to happen in 2024, you need a candidate that is going to win at least 80 percent of the votes in the Ashanti Region to guarantee us victory.

“You need a candidate who can do two things, consolidate your base and reduce the strength of your opponent. We all know that the base of the NDC is the Volta Region but many people have been asking why Voltarians like me so much.

“Everybody in Ghana knows that the people of the Volta Region have taken me to be one of them. I believe that I am the candidate who can win 80 percent of the votes in the Ashanti Region and also compete with the NDC in the Volta Region for their votes to be reduced,” he said in Twi.