Asante Akyem North NPP accuses MP of causing problems in the party

The Asante Akyem North Constituency executives of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) are calling on the party’s national executives to intervene in some “internal wrangling” within the party.

The Constituency executives in a press release, accused the Member of Parliament for the area, Andy Appiah-Kubi of fuelling problems in the party due to certain decisions he takes which are against the party’s constitution.

According to the press release, “The M.P. Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi since he assumed office has suspended six Constituency Executive members who according to him, were supporters of the immediate past M.P. Hon. Kwadwo Baah Agyemang without following the laid down procedures in the Party Constitution. No charges were preferred against us and we did not appear before the Regional Disciplinary Committee. No official letters have been given to us.”

They have, therefore, urging the top hierarchy of the party to look into the allegations and resolve the problems in the party as failure to do so means, “apathy will set in and the consequences may be disastrous.”

Below is the full statement of the release

We the undersigned Constituency Executive Members of the New Patriotic Party in Asante Akyem North wish to bring to the notice of the general public some internal wrangling in the party which started immediately after the Party’s primaries to elect candidates for the Parliamentary Elections. If these problems are not resolved immediately, apathy will set in and the consequences may be disastrous.

Some of the problems are listed below:

• Suspension of Six Executive Members

The M.P. Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi since he assumed office has suspended six Constituency Executive members who according to him, were supporters of the immediate past M.P. Hon. Kwadwo Baah Agyemang without following the laid down procedures in the Party Constitution. No charges were preferred against us and we did not appear before the Regional Disciplinary Committee. No official letters have been given to us.

The M.P. and the Chairman have appointed some party members outside the Executive to replace us. Taking a cue from the National Executive when the Chairman and the General Secretary were suspended, we feel the action of the M.P. and the Chairman is unconstitutional. These “appointed executive members” attend meetings at the Regional Office and even attended the recent National Extraordinary Delegates Conference in Kumasi.

The Executive Members who have been illegally suspended are:

1. Joe Nimo Aikins-1st Vice Chairman

2. Kwame Pese-Danquah-Secretary

3. Emmanuel Buabeng-Youth Organizer

4. Nana Yaw Asiedu-Deputy Organizer

5. Amanpene Patricia-Women Organizer

6. Rebecca Osei-Deputy Women Organizer

We have followed the procedures outlined in the Party’s Constitution for a peaceful solution of this problem but all our efforts have proved futile. We made our complaint to the Constituency Disciplinary Committee and the Reconciliation Committee set up by the Regional Executives and finally to The Regional Minister. Copies of these complaints have been attached.

• The Constituency Chairman has failed to pay some monies due us. The Regional Executives invited the Constituency Executives to a meeting in Kumasi immediately after the Elections to say “thank you” for the hard work done that ensured success in both Presidential and Parliamentary Elections. After the meeting, honorarium was given in envelopes. The 2nd Vice Chairman who represented the Chairman handed all the envelopes to the Chairman but up to date, the Chairman has not paid some of us despite several appeals by the Constituency Council of Elders Chairman. The Council of Elders Chairman wanted to ensure peace in the Constituency but the Constituency Chairman did not give peace a chance.

Again, the Chairman has failed to pay the honorarium due us after the Extraordinary National Delegates Conference in Kumasi recently.

• Registration for New Membership Cards

The registration for new membership cards which should have been done openly to enable old party members re-register for the new cards and new members to be registered was done nicodemously without opening it to the public. Many party members were not registered not to talk of new members. This, especially the registration for new members has affected the membership drive.

• Registration of Party Members in the various Polling Stations

According to the Party’s directives, this exercise should be done at the Polling Stations and the list forwarded to the Constituency Office. Unfortunately in our case especially in Agogo, this exercise is being done in the Constituency Office under the supervision of the 2nd Vice Chairman, Mr. Owusu Nyantakyi with the intention of deleting names of some genuine party members because according to him, he will not add those names to the Register for them to vote against the incumbent Chairman in the next Constituency Executives Elections.

• Sacking of Polling Station Executives and Electoral Area Co-ordinators

The Party Chairman, Mr. Sampson Agyei has taken the party as his bonafide property. He has sacked some Polling Station Executives and some Electoral Area Co-ordinators.

Just recently, the Chairman made a public pronouncement that he has sacked the Electoral Area Co-ordinator for Obuasi, Mr. Alfred Gyimah because according to him, the Co-ordinator is an aid to the former M.P. and for that matter, he cannot work with him. True to his word, he no longer involves Mr. Gyimah in any party activity. He has appointed another person who has not been voted for as the Electoral Area Co-ordinator.

Another Electoral Area Co-ordinator for Newtown, Christopher Oppong Ampadu-Kwakwah has also been sacked and replaced with somebody who has not been voted for because he is the special assistant to the former M.P. These two Electoral Area Co-ordinators were not invited to the Constituency Disciplinary Committee.

• Refusal by the Chairman to recognize the “Suspended Executives” to the Extraordinary Delegates Conference in Kumasi

At the recently held Extraordinary Delegates Conference held in Kumasi, the Constituency Chairman failed to recognize us the elected Executives and gave our accreditation to the appointed executives. This is an infringement on the Party Constitution, that is, for somebody appointed to assume a position of Constituency Secretary, Constituency Youth Organizer, Constituency Women Organizer and Constituency 1st Vice Chairman.

In the previous years, there used to be general meetings once every month in Agogo for the Polling Station Executives in the town to report on happenings in their areas. This rekindled interest in the party and made Polling Station Executives active. If the Constituency Chairman is not seeing to it that this is done in Agogo where he stays, then we can’t tell what is happening in the other towns. NPP is virtually dead in Asante Akyem North Constituency.

These and many others are issues affecting the New Patriotic Party in Asante Akyem North and as a matter of urgency, we call on the National Executives to come in and resolve these issues because if not resolved immediately, it will have a negative impact on the Party’s fortunes here in Asante Akyem North in the next general elections.

Mr. Joe Nimo Aikins

1st Vice Chairman

(0505847153)

Patricia Amanpene

Women Organizer

(0243448612)

Mr. Kwame Pese-Danquah

Secretary

(0243515696)

Mrs. Rebecca Osei

Women Organizer

(0243586003)

Nana Yaw Asiedu

Deputy Organizer

(0240990445)

Mr. Emmanuel Amakye Buaben

Youth Organizer

(?0243305695