Kumasi — A KEEN contest is expected to ensue in the battle for the election of the Ashanti Regional representative to the office of the Council of State.

This year's election, according to information gathered by The Chronicle, has generated a great deal of interest with a number of party activists expected to vie for the position.

As at the close of nominations yesterday, sources close to Ashanti Regional Electoral Commission indicated that about ten candidates had filed their nomination papers to vie for the position.

Interesting names amongst the list is a leading youth activist, Kwasi Ofori Agyemang Boadi, whose candidature continues to draw discussion amongst party fanatics and delegates in the region.

Ofori Boadi was among the ten candidates who submitted their forms to the Regional headquarters of the EC on Tuesday, alongside the incumbent, Nana Asiamah Poku- Afrifa- II, the chief of Toase in the Atwima Nwabaigya district of Ashanti.

Nana Poku-Afrifa II beat the Kumasi-based industrialist and leading member of the opposition New Patriotic Party, Mr. Akenten Appiah Menkah four years ago in a keenly contested election for the position, and is expected to battle it out with nine others on February 6 when the elections will be held.

Also vying for the position is the first MP for the Subin Constituency, Mr. J. T. Sarkodie, who represented the party in Parliament between 1992 and 1996.

It is, however, the candidature of Kwasi Boadi that has come as a surprise to many residents, but checks by this paper indicate that the vociferous youth advocate is enjoying popular support amongst the top hierarchy of the party and could pull a surprise.

The perception out there is that the selection of old people into the Council of State, more particularly, when such representatives are traditional rulers, do not eventually bring anything beneficial to the people.

Mr. Kwasi Boadi, who is the Regional Coordinator of Leadership and Entrepreneurial Development (LESDEP), told The Chronicle he was hopeful that this time round the old order, where people were elected to the Council based on their age will change with the focusing going to the functional aspect.

"Considering the fact that the old people have failed to make any meaningful impact, I think it's about time we gave the opportunity to young people like us to also join the Council and see what we can do," he noted.