CHAOS IN NDC PRIMARIES

Posted in: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Monday, November 23, 2015

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) went to the polls at the weekend to elect its parliamentary candidates for the 2016 general elections, but the exercise was marred with violence and chaos in some constituencies.

Clubs, machetes, stones and assorted missiles were used alongside raining of insults against opponents.

The ruling party also used the process to endorse President John Mahama as the standard bearer for the presidential election next year.

Some political observers were tracing the major cause of the violence to the hurriedly-arranged biometric voter register used by the party in the various constituencies where non-NDC members found their names in the electoral roll.

Many candidates claimed that they could not trace their names in the register which had been compiled to enable the party expand its electoral college to cover all its card-bearing members in the country, while other candidates said their supporters’ names had been struck out of the register in what looked like a ploy to disenfranchise some members.

In the process, there were allegations of eye-punching, burning of registers, snatching of ballot boxes, destruction of ballot boxes, burning of cars, kidnapping, barrage of insults, near attacks on journalists, late arrival of election materials, shortage of voting materials and vote buying.

Not only were electoral materials vandalised in some constituencies, but some of the aspirants were also beaten up.

Trouble Spots

Ningo-Prampram Constituency, where veteran Enoch Teye Mensah is being challenged by his protégé and presidential staffer Samuel George Nettey, was one of the flashpoints.

Sam George was all over the media claiming that ET Mensah’s supporters had beaten him up after he alleged that his name and those of over 3,000 of his supporters had been removed from the register. But Greater Accra Regional chairman of the NDC, Kobina Ade Coker, later dismissed Sam George’s claim and said the party would sanction him for lying.

In the Ejura constituency, ballot boxes were scattered and destroyed. In Nanton, an NDC activist who attempted to pick a ballot box away, was beaten up mercilessly.

There was violence in Kumbungu and a couple of polling stations in Sagnerigu in Tamale, the Northern Regional capital.

Whilst in some offices the registers were burnt, it got bloody in other constituencies like Tepa.

Media reports said there was also violence in Bole where President Mahama cast his ballot, after soldiers had arrested two persons allegedly trying to impersonate the security agencies.

Missing Names

Dr. Zenator Rawlings aka Osu Lagata, daughter of former President JJ Rawlings, who defeated veteran Nii Armah Ashittey - former Minister - could not find her name in the register at Klottey Korle during voting time.

There were reports that AMA boss, Alfred Oko Vanderjuije, who won at Ablekuma South, could also not find his name in the register, so also was the candidate in Abuakwa North.

The results in Madina are being contested by Francis Xavier Sosu, who was defeated by incumbent Amadu Sorogho, while at Ablekuma South, all the three candidates, including Prince Dereck Adjei, who were beaten by Mrs Dinah Twum, have said they would go to court.

Some political analysts say the widespread violence in the NDC primaries makes President Mahama’s recent suggestion that it is only the opposition NPP that is prone to violence ‘hypocritical.’

Late Voting

Last Friday, the NDC, through its Director of Elections, Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, issued a statement that 269 out of 275 constituencies were going to elect their candidates but due to logistical constraints and in some cases violence, 14 out of the 269 constituencies would not vote as scheduled.

By Sunday, the party had announced that it had ‘successfully’ completed voting in 256 constituencies and that the remaining 14 constituencies were taking place same day.

There were reports that it was the National Security that stopped voting in Akwatia in the Easter Region.

‘Yes’ or ‘No’

In the presidential ballot it was a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ decision by voters for President Mahama, who was contesting unopposed and the party overwhelmingly endorsed him for the 2016 race.

However, there was embarrassing moments for the ruling party as a number of their own supporters voted ‘No’ against Mr. Mahama’s endorsement, coupled with many ballots marked ‘Spoilt.’

Before the ballot many of the party’s leading members had warned that they would deal with any member who voted against the president, but the directive appeared not to have resonated among the rank and file.

‘No’ Vote Propaganda

Some of the party’s leading members have been trying to downplay the ‘No’ votes by claiming that those votes against Mr. Mahama were from opposition NPP members who had ‘infiltrated’ their party while others claimed they were from ‘illiterate’ voters.

NPP In NDC Register

NDC General Secretary, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, told Adom FM in Accra that he was not surprised that NPP members’ names were found in the NDC’s register.

He claimed the NPP, in its bid to break their ranks, always find clandestine ways to infiltrate the NDC’s database just to cause confusion.

Reacting to news that NPP communications director of Bolga Central, Elvis-Figo Atiah’s name had been found on the register being used at Methodist JHS polling station in Bolga, the NDC chief scribe said, “I am not surprised. NPP always want to tempt us so they find foul means to infiltrate our camp just to create confusion but they have failed.”

National Election

There were also interesting spectacles during last Saturday’s primaries when some elderly members of the NDC who had turned up to vote said they thought it was a national election.

Punitive Action

Later NDC National Chairman, Kofi Portuphy, posited that the party was going to take punitive action against aspirants who fomented trouble during the exercise.

"When the reports come we have to verify them. If they are true I will be very surprised. I am surprised some people are doing that,” he told Joy FM.

"In national elections we don't campaign on [elections day]. We are investigating. If we find out that you have offended the electoral rules you will be sanctioned," he added.