Confusion At NPP Congress ... Probe Underway

The Western Regional Secretariat of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has set up a five-member disciplinary committee to look into the circumstances that led to the abrupt end of the Jomoro constituency congress of the party last September 25 and make the necessary recommendations to the regional executive.

The regional chairman of the party, Mr. Peter Mac Manu, who disclosed this to the Chronicle in Takoradi last Wednesday, said his outfit has been able to identify those who were behind the disturbances that led to the abrupt end of the congress but they want to use the due process of the law as spelt out in the Constitution of the party to bring them to book should it become necessary for them to do so.

The committee which was inaugurated by Mac Manu at the regional party office in Takoradi last Tuesday, has Mrs. Cudjoe, Mr. George Offeigbu, the former regional first vice chairman, Mr. P. K. Damoah, a party member from Wassa Akropong, Mr. J. S. Appiah from Takoradi and Mr. Quartson, also a party member from Sefwi Wioso as members.

According to Mac Manu, after the committee had finished its work, including the necessary recommendations, his outfit will sit down and look at the recommendation as presented to them and apply the necessary sanctions against those who deserve it to serve as a deterrent to other party faithfuls to behave well.

Mac Manu was on September 25 compelled to once again postpone the Jomoro Constituency congress of the party at Nvelenu in the Jomoro district when confusion erupted over the eligibility of some of the delegates.

An attempt made by the party chairman and his men to scrutinize the names of the delegates was met with a strong resistance by the very people who raised the legibility issue.

The ensuring confusion that erupted could not be contained by the Half Assini police to enable the congress to continue.

This compelled Mac Manu to call off the congress once again.

A similar problem occurred during the first abortive congress at Half Assini somewhere in July when some of the delegates who were divided into two factions protested against the genuineness of some of the names being called as delegates to replace some of the ward chairmen who had deliberately been sidelined and prevented from voting because they do not belong to the camp of one of the contestants vying for the chairmanship post. In the end, the regional executives who travelled all the way from Takoradi to Half Assini to supervise the congress have to call it off after they had publicly announced the dissolution of the constituency executives and appointed Mr. Peter Nwanwa as interim chairman.

On realizing that Half Assini, the Jomoro district capital, is becoming a trouble spot, the regional executives decided to push the venue of the next congress to Nvelenu which is a bit far away from the capital but that could not solve the Jomoro problem, which has been existing since the days of the NDC government.

No date has yet been fixed for the try of another congress, which is supposed to be the last one in the region.

The Western Regional Minister, Hon. Joseph Boahen Aidoo has meanwhile admitted in public that Jomoro district is a difficult district, therefore, many government officials who would be appointed to administer there would have to be careful.

He said for the past four years or so, the Jomoro district is the only district in the region that was not having a substantive District Chief Executive (DCE).

The minister who was swearing in Mr. Ketiboa Blay as the new Jomoro DCE at the residency in Sekondi, last Friday, therefore, charged the new DCE to stay clear of any chieftaincy disputes and stick to his administrative work.