Jomoro NPP bars communicators from defending Akufo-Addo on radio

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) branch in Jomoro Constituency of Western Region has suspended its communicators.

They have been barred from appearing on radio to defend the party and the Akufo-Addo-led government.

This harsh decision was unanimously taken by the Constituency Executive Committee of the party.

This Reporter contacted the leadership of the party to ascertain reasons behind this suspension, but they declined to disclose the reason.

According to this Reporter, the party has not been sending any Communication team members to represent the Akufo-Addo-led government on any radio station in the Constituency since August 2019.

Per the independent investigation this Reporter has conducted, the Constituency Executive Committee took the decision following steps taken by the party to sack the Municipal Chief Executive for the area, Ernest Kofie.

It would be recalled that on August 6, 2019, the Constituency Executive Committee issued a communique to all party members to dissociate themselves from activities of the MCE and the Assembly.

Following this communique, the party staged a mammoth demonstration on August 14, 2019 against the MCE for showing gross disrespect to the leadership of the party and called on President Akufo-Addo to sack him from office.

After the demonstration, some Communication team members went on radio to attack the demonstrators and declared their support for the MCE, urging President Akufo-Addo not to sack the MCE.

This Reporter learnt that the behaviour exhibited by these Communicators didn't go down well with leadership of the party hence the indefinite suspension.

Speaking to some party members in the Constituency, they described the decision taken by the leadership of the party as harsh and unacceptable.

They contended that the leadership could have suspended those that declared their support for the MCE and allow others to continue to defend the party and the Akufo-Addo-led government on radio than to suspend the entire Communication Department.

They are therefore calling on the Constituency Executive Committee to rescind the decision for the betterment of the party.

They said, "Almost three months now, no NPP Communicator has been allowed to appear on any of the three radio stations in Jomoro here to defend the party and President Akufo-Addo".

The NDC is peddling falsehood against President Akufo-Addo and it pains us a lot, we are calling on our leaders to change their decision as soon as possible to save the party from losing the seat. We are not happy at all".

They added, "What is the Regional Executives and National Executives doing about this suspension? What is happening in our party nowadays is unacceptable, who is in control now, they want us to lose the seat to the NDC in 2020? We are appealing to the leadership of the party at the Regional and National levels to call our Constituency Executive Committee to order".

The Reporter can say that the NPP in Jomoro have been divided into two camps, thus, MCE camp and MP camp.

The MP camp has been accusing the MCE of working against the Member of Parliament (MP), Hon. Paul Essien to lose the seat.

The MCE camp on the other hand, has also been accusing the MP of working against the MCE, Ernest Kofie of losing his job.

The NPP won the Jomoro parliamentary seat in 2016 for the first time since 1992 in the history of Ghana's politics.

Hon. Ernest Kofie who led the party to victory in 2016 as Chairman was nominated and subsequently confirmed as MCE for Jomoro Municipality in 2017, but he has since been accused of working against the success of the party.