By Benjamin A. Commey, GNA
Accra, April 19, GNA – The leadership of the People’s National Convention (PNC) says it is unperturbed by the recent breakaway of some members from the Party.
Mr David Apasera, Chairman of the PNC, said the breakaway would rather unite the rest of the Party’s rank and file to put up a spirited performance to improve the fortunes of the Party in the upcoming elections.
Eleven members of the PNC, including some National Executive Committee (NEC) members, on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, announced their resignation from the Party.
The eleven, subsequently, announced the establishment of a new political party – the People’s National Party (PNP), under the chairmanship of Madam Janet Nabla, a former General Secretary of the PNC.
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, in Accra, on Wednesday, following the breakaway, Mr Apasera said the PNC was not worried about the development.
“It doesn’t give us any scare, but I don’t see how someone who claims to want to form a political party does not want to come under any constitutional rule,” he said.
He said, as a political party, it had a constitution which governed its affairs and, therefore, anybody who desired to remain in the Party must be guided by its tenets.
“The Party has a constitution, the constitution stipulates processes with which one can do anything and then somebody says yes, I will not go by your constitutional procedure, she goes around disagreeing with the leadership of the Party, we take her to court and the court tells her that look, what was done was constitutional and that you have to agree to it.
“But, she says she won’t agree to it, I am going ahead to form another party, fine. People who will go with her are those who think that the rule of law cannot operate in their rank. So, what do we have to say? I don’t think that we are worried about such an issue,” Mr Apasera emphasised.
He also noted that the PNC as a political party had witnessed a number of breakaways, but remained resolute and united in such times, indicating that it would overcome the new development and forge ahead with a united front.
He rejected claims that the resigned eleven members were all part of the NEC of the Party.
According to him only two – Sulemana Seidu, a former Ashanti Regional Regional Secretary of PNC and Francis Daasu, a former Deputy Youth Organiser, were NEC members, stressing that the national executive of the party remained intact.
“She (Janet Nabla) was suspended so she was no longer a NEC member,” he added.
Mr Apasera indicated that the Party had begun processes to elect a new national executives, adding that by the close of July, it would elect its flagbearer to lead the Party into the 2024 election.
“Certainly by now we would have had a flagbearer but unfortunately we had this lady who got us locked down in court. Fortunately, now the court has pronounced judgement and I’m the leader of the Party and we have our executives intact, we are going forward to organise from constitutional to regional and then to national congress to elect a new flagbearer to lead the Party and national executives,” he indicated.
Mr Apasera called on the rank and file of the Party to remain committed to the ideology of the founders, stick together to better the fortunes of the Party in the upcoming polls.
GNA