By Edward Acquah
Accra, Dec. 17, GNA – The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is yet to take a decision on an interim injunction granted by the Amasaman High Court restraining the Party from swearing-in Mr George Opare Addo, the NDC National Youth Organiser-Elect.
The Party’s Congress Legal Team is expected to meet Saturday to study the injunction and advise the NDC on the way forward.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency at the NDC’s National Executive Congress in Accra, Mr Abraham Amaliba, the Party’s Director of Legal Affairs, confirmed that the NDC has been served by the Court.
“The Legal Team is here at the Congress grounds. I’m told the Party has been served now so I will take the document and we meet as a team and decide,” he said.
The Court granted the request after hearing an application for an interim injunction filed on December 13th, 2022, by Mr Brogya Genfi, who lost the contest to Mr Opare Addo last Saturday, in Cape Coast.
The suit was jointly filed with Mr Ibrahim Rashid, President of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA) branch of the NDC Tertiary Education Institutions Network (TEIN) and Mr Paul Amaldago, President, University of Ghana branch of ΤΕΙΝ.
The NDC is the first defendant, while Mr Alex Segbeffia, NDC Director of Elections and Mr Danial Amartey also of the NDC, with the Electoral Commission are the subsequent defendants. Mr Opare Addo is the fifth defendant.
The trio are challenging the validity of Mr Opare Addo’s election on grounds that the defendants violated the NDC’s directives for the organisation of the election and decisions of the High Court.
By Convention, the Youth Organiser-Elect would be sworn in together with other National Executive members that would be elected at the end of Saturday’s National Congress.
However, under the current circumstance, Mr Opare Addo, who was declared winner of last Saturday’s election, may not be sworn into office if the Party complied with the Court’s decision.
More than 9,000 delegates have converged at the Accra Sports Stadium to elect officers to steer the affairs of the Party for the next four years.
The Congress has been officially opened but voting is expected to commence at about 1500 hours.
The candidates for the National Chairmanship race are the incumbent Chairman, Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, the current General Secretary, Johnson Aseidu Nketiah, NiiArmah Ashietey, a former Greater Accra Regional Minister and former MP for Korle Klottey, and Mr Samuel Yaw Adusei, a former Deputy Minister for Works and Housing and former Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister,
under the Mahama administration.
For the General Secretary position, the candidates are, Dr Peter Boamah Otokunor, Deputy General Secretary, Mr Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, a former Member of Parliament for Ketu South and Transport Minister, Mr Elvis Afriyie Ankrah, a former Minister of Youth and Sports and Ghana’s Deputy Ambassador to China and Mr Abdul Ishaq Farrakhan, a former party chairman of the Obuasi Municipality, who contested Mr Aseidu Nketiah in 2014.
Political commentators assert that the contest for the chairmanship is a straight “fight” between Chairman Ofosu- Ampofo and Mr Aseidu Nketiah, a.k.a. General Mosquito, the longest serving General Secretary of the NDC (17 years).
GNA