Twenty-one aspirants in the Ablekuma West Constituency elections of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have secured an injunction from the Accra High Court against the exercise.
The injunction with suit number GJ/07882022, was secured on Friday, April 29, three days to the elections.
The plaintiffs sought to restrain the National Secretariat of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Electoral Commission (EC) and the Ablekuma West NPP from holding the constituency executive elections because they believe the processes leading to the elections were not fair to them.
All the three defendants except the National Secretariat of NPP have been duly served. At the National Secretariat, the General Secretary, John Boadu, was reportedly in a meeting at the time of the visit of the bailiff.
The twenty-one plaintiffs are:
- Doris B. Yiadom
- Joseph Asiamah
- William Kofi Akakpo
- Samuel Appiah Adadey
- Hammond Abeka
- William Adu
- Catherine Arhin
- Victoria Coffie
- Samuel Fiifi Ackah
- Eric Asamoah
- Christiana M. Afedo [Constituency Women’s Organizer who is contesting again]
- Lazarus Lomo
- Ahmed Ismeal Mahamud
- Kingsford Amakye
- Amoakohene Alexander [Constituency Secretary and who is contesting again]
- Nana Osei Agyeman
- Francis Impraim
- Abednego Tettey Tetteh
- Samuel Tagoe
- David Kyei Boahene
- Charles Agyiri
The plaintiffs said the challenges associated with the Ablekuma West elections began during the picking of nomination forms for the various positions.
“The process of picking the nomination forms was flawed with challenges. There were issues. The vetting was full of insults and we have written petitions to the national headquarters, General Secretary, Elections Committee at the constituency, to the regional chairman, and up to date, there has not been any respond.”
They explained that “some of the polling station aspirants took the issue to court…we withdrew the matter to be settled amicably but no one has called us till date”.
“We picked forms to contest for various positions in the constituency and after the vetting, the Election Committee refused to invite us for deliberations on the elections.”
They explained that “the committee chairman must call us to notify us of the processes, when, where and how the voting would be done, but this was not done”.
The members added that “we wrote a letter to the committee to meet them because we were to be given an album for the voting…we wrote a letter to the election committee, chaired by the Great Accra Regional Secretary of the NPP, Charles Parker Nii Odailai, but they said they were not ready to meet us”.
“We are entitled to the album…but all the 21 of us have not been given the voting album. The arrangements for the voting, we don’t know, we just heard on air that voting would be done on Sunday.”
The aspirant explained that “we used our own means to get a provisional album and about 95% of contacts numbers we provided to them [vetting committee] on the album were wrong. They had changed some of the digits in order for them to say they called us but it was wrong”.
They explained that “we raised these issues at the vetting and they promised to give us the original album but three days to the election, it is not in”.
“We wrote a petition for the extension for the election but there was no response. Odailai purportedly told the secretary that he was not ready to meet them for any discussions.”
Bailiff Service
Asked whether they have been able to serve all the three defendants – National Secretariat of NPP, the Electoral Commission and the Ablekuma West Constituency NPP – Madam Christiana M. Afedo, ,who is the Constituency Women’s Organizer and contesting the seat and Amoakohene Alexander, the Constituency Secretary, who is seeking re-election, explained that except the National Headquarters, the two have been served.
They explained that “we went with the bailiff from the High Court, Joshua Adamtey to the Headquarters and they said the General Secretary John Boadu was in a meeting”.
“The bailiff met his Personal Assistant, Mike Opoku, popularly known as ‘Ozoo’ at his secretariat and he said he cannot take it and that we should give it to John Boadu himself because he has not been told to receive such letters.”
The duo said “the bailiff went into the meeting…and indeed he was in a meeting with the National Treasurer, Kwabena Abankwa at the time but they told him [bailiff] to go and leave it with the secretariat but the secretariat refused to take it”.
They, therefore, left with the injunction but the EC and the Ablekuma West Constituency have been duly served.
Source: 3news.com
