The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has disqualified Steven Nhyira Odarteifio and Najib Saqib Yahaya from its National Youth Organiser contest after both failed to pass the party’s vetting process in Accra.
The two aspirants appeared before the vetting committee at the NDC headquarters on Wednesday, November 11, but were not cleared to continue in the race. The party has not explained the reasons for their disqualification, according to reports by Citi Newsroom and Rainbow Radio Online on Wednesday night.
Neither Odarteifio nor Yahaya had publicly commented on the decision by press time. The NDC had also not issued an official statement confirming the grounds for their exclusion.
Odarteifio entered the contest after filing his nomination on a platform centred on job creation, economic empowerment and leadership development for young people. His proposals included reshaping the party’s Youth Wing so it would extend beyond campaign activities and help young people access employment, skills training, finance and support to establish businesses.
Four aspirants submitted nominations for the position, according to a briefing by the Congress Elections Committee after nominations closed on Monday. The filing list included Basiera Saankara and Okai Mintah, alongside Odarteifio and Yahaya.
With Odarteifio and Yahaya disqualified, Saankara and Mintah are the only candidates known to remain in the contest, subject to the outcome of their vetting. Their clearance status had not been reported when the information about the disqualifications emerged.
The decisions were made on the first of two days set aside to vet 121 people seeking national executive positions within the party. The process began on Wednesday and was due to continue on Thursday.
Candidates who receive clearance will contest the National Delegates Congress on December 19.
The Congress Elections Committee is assessing all 121 aspirants who submitted their forms before Monday’s 5:00 p.m. deadline. In total, 138 people picked nomination forms for the national executive elections.
The Youth Organiser position was scheduled for vetting on Wednesday, alongside the contests for chairman, general secretary and other senior party offices.
