Drama At Hohoe Municipal Assembly Durbar

...as chiefs walkout on “disrespectful” MCE

Story : Desmond Darko (The Catalyst)

There was drama at Hohoe, on Tuesday during the swearing-in ceremony of elected Assembly Members of the Municipality when the entire chiefs of the Gbi traditional Area walkout angrily from the durbar, organised by the Municipal Assembly as part of a nationwide event. The chiefs’ left the durbar unceremoniously on grounds that the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) Mr Victor Herman Condorbrey has been disrespectful to them.

The action by the chiefs was enough to say that it was the last stroke that broke the camel’s back, as the MCE was fired from office yesterday by President Mills after several months of continuous agitation by many individuals and groups for his removal from office.

Led by the Paramount Chief of Gbi Traditional Area, Torgbega Gabusu, who was the chairman for the occasion, the chiefs stormed out of the durbar grounds in such a dramatic fashion that the now sacked MCE was left to swim in a pool of utter embarrassment.

The Catalyst has learnt that the reason for the chiefs’ action was that the Paramount Chief’s nominee for one of the Assembly positions, Torgbe Asamani Gboxo, was set aside due to alleged machinations by the MCE. Speaking to The Catalyst on phone yesterday in the morning, Torgbe Gboxo, who confirmed the incident, told the paper that “The MCE has no respect for the paramount chief. MCE’s are not lords. We are the landowners.”

President John Evans Atta Mills yesterday relieved five Metropolitan /Municipal/District Chief executives of their post with immediate effect. Mr Victor Herman Condorbrey of the Hohoe Municipal Assembly, Sekondi/Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly DCE, Mr Kobina Pra Annan, Mr Joseph Jones Amoah of the Ahanta West District Assembly, Mr Moses Kofi Armah of the Bibiani/Ahwianso Bekwai District and Mr Victor Nyianyi Keblan of the Jomoro District Assembly. A statement signed by the secretary to the President J.K Bebaako Mensah noted that the respective Regional Ministers are to oversee the administration of the affected assemblies until new executives are elected.

It would be recalled that in a recent publication by your authoritative, The Catalyst, the paper made known a recent press conference held by a group calling itself the ‘Hohoe North Concerned Youth’, who based on a 14-point allegation of corruption against the MCE called for his removal from office by the President. This was followed by an attack on the Hohoe North Chairman of the NDC whose official vehicle was clamped by some assailants believed to have been sent by the MCE. But he is said to have denied knowledge of the attack on the NDC constituency chairman.