Amenfi West NDC in turmoil

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Thursday September 8, 2011.
The executives and the rank and file of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Wassa Amenfi West Constituency of the Western region are at each other’s throat over the development of the area.

The disunity in the party was evident on Monday, July 29 when a meeting between a fact finding team from the NDC regional office in Takoradi and the constituency executives together with the DCE Samuel Victor Meisu was disrupted by angry party members at Samreboi.

The two-member fact finding team included the second Regional Vice chairman, Solomon Kwabena Amoah and his youth organizer, Kobina Mintah Akwandor.

They were visiting the constituency to assess the performance of the NDC and the popularity of President John Evans Atta Mills ahead of the 2012 general elections when the unfortunate incident occurred.

A source told DAILY GUIDE that after visiting some communities in the area, the fact finding team stopped over at Samreboi to confer with party members but the meeting ended abruptly when some of the members ordered the constituency executives to leave the place.

“After the opening prayer and introduction of personalities, the branch executives told the regional officers to sack the constituency executives from the meeting before they could proceed on the agenda,” the source said.

According to the agitated members, some branch chairmen including Anthony Adarkwa and Prosper Dey, the constituency executives had neglected the rank and file of the party and were making money for themselves.

In the process, a heated argument ensued and the Constituency Secretary Peter Addo, who doubles as the youth employment coordinator in the district, was almost beaten up by the irate members.

The regional executives called for calm but the angry members insisted the constituency executives should leave before the meeting could take place.

As a result, the regional executives had no option than to cancel the meeting with the explanation that the constituency executives were supposed to brief them on the situation in area before they could proceed to solicit contributions from the members.

It is believed that the DCE, Mr. Meisu is allegedly working hard to push the constituency secretary, Mr. Addo to contest and unseat the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP) John Gyetuah in the upcoming NDC primary and that has worsened matters.

There is bitter rivalry between the MP’s camp and those supporting the DCE and many fear the NDC may lose the seat to the opposition if they do not reconcile.

According to the branch chairmen, “Few people have hijacked the party and are doing what they want to the detriment of the party we all fought hard to bring to power.”

“They don’t visit the branches and the communities to find out what is on the ground. The members and the entire people are getting peeved by the day and it is going to cost us if things continue this way.”