The National Democratic Congress, (NDC) in the Upper West Region, has sacked four executives in the Lawra Constituency, who they say contributed to the party’s poor performance, which saw the defeat of their 2016 parliamentary candidate, Bede Ziedeng.
The four include a Constituency Secretary, Philip Bagyo, Deputy Youth Organizer, Sampson Botee, Women’s Organizer, Hajia Bintu Alhassan, and the party’s Communication Director in the constituency.
According to the party, they were sacked because they supported the dismissed former Member of Parliament of the area, Sampson Abu, who contested as an independent candidate in the last parliamentary elections held on December 7, 2016.
The Lawra Constituency Chairman of the NDC, Joshua Lotaa, told Citi News the actions of the dismissed executives contributed to the defeat of the party’s parliamentary candidate Bede Ziedeng.
He noted that, the constituency secretary as well as his other executives, received money and logistics from the party to boost their campaign, yet failed to utilize the resources for the purpose to which they were given.
“The Secretary received resources as well as a brand new motorbike to do party work for the constituency, but he never campaigned for the party. All that he did was to campaign for the independent candidate and at the end of the day we lost the seat. So after the election during the review, everybody accused the secretary of breaching the party constituency for his action, same with his other colleagues – All of them received money for campaign,” he added.
In a separate statement from the Lawra NDC, the party has replaced the dismissed executives with the following people:
“Madam Mary Zimaal has been appointed as the Constituency Women Organizer to replace Hajia Bintu Alhassan whilst Madam Seraphina Banongwie has also been appointed Deputy Constituency Women Organiser to replace the late Agnes Sorinye. Mr Yussif Zakaria has been appointed Deputy Constituency Youth Organizer in place of Mr. Sampson Botee. Mr Michael Tangkur has been elevated from Deputy Communications Officer to Constituency Communications Officer whilst Mr Muazu Adams has been appointed Deputy Constituency Communications Officer.”
“Mr Frederick Yirlabuor, Alhaji Baba Wawaa, Aloysious Daanoma, Clovis Saame, Nicholas Nangzie, and Faatol Dominic, have all been appointed as members of the Executive Committee of the party in accordance with article 49 of the NDC constitution,” the statement added.
Following the NDC’s poor performance in the 2016 election, the party formed a 13-member committee to investigate the cause of the party’s historic defeat.
The committee was tasked to submit its report within 90 days after its inauguration.
Below is the full statement from the NDC in Lawra constituency:
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS
LAWRA CONSTITUENCY
LAWRA
The Lawra Constituency Executive Committee of the NDC held a meeting on the 14th December 2016 at Eremon D/A J. H.S. to review the performance of the party in the 2016 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.
At the end of the deliberations, the following decisions were taken at the meeting:
The Constituency Secretary Mr. Philip Bagyo has been removed from office and suspended from the party for refusing to participate in campaigning for the party in the 2016 elections but rather chose to campaign for the independent candidate Samson Abu which led to the defeat of the party’s parliamentary candidate Bede A. Ziedeng in the parliamentary election.
His conduct is anti-party and in breach of articles 45 and 46 of the NDC constitution.
In place of Mr Philip Bagyo, Mr Ignatious Ziem Meyir who is the Deputy Constituency Secretary has been elevated to the position of substantive constituency secretary of the Lawra constituency in accordance with article 49 of the NDC constitution.
The Deputy Constituency Youth Organiser; Mr. Sampson Botee has also been removed from office and suspended from the party for campaigning on the platform of the independent candidate and also acting as his polling agent at the Kalsagri polling station on election day. His conduct is also anti-party and in complete breach of articles 45 and 46 of the NDC constitution.
The party re-iterates that on the 1st November 2016, the General Secretary of the NDC Mr, Johnson Asiedu Nketia dismissed from the party Hon. Samson Abu, Hajia Bintu Alhassan (the then Constituency Women Organiser), Mr. Peter Asibi Kayir( the then Constituency Communication Officer) in a press statement also for breaching articles 45 and 46 of the NDC constitution and we hereby confirm those sanctions.
The following decisions were also taken at the meeting:-
Madam Mary Zimaal has been appointed as the Constituency Women Organizer to replace Hajia Bintu Alhassan whilst Madam Seraphina Banongwie has also been appointed Deputy Constituency Women Organiser to replace the late Agnes Sorinye Mr Yussif Zakaria has been appointed Deputy Constituency Youth Organizer in place of Mr. Sampson Botee
Mr Michael Tangkur has been elevated from Deputy Communications Officer to Constituency Communications Officer whilst Mr Muazu Adams has been appointed Deputy Constituency Communications Officer
Mr Frederick Yirlabuor, Alhaji Baba Wawaa, Aloysious Daanoma, Clovis Saame, Nicholas Nangzie, and Faatol Dominic, have all been appointed as members of the Executive Committee of the party in accordance with article 49 of the NDC constitution.
We wish to use this opportunity to thank all NDC party members in the constituency for their support during the 2016 elections and to urge them to continue to have faith in the party.
We appeal to all party members to continue to remain calm whilst we take steps to put things right so that the party can move forward. The NDC still remains the dominant political force in the constituency and will continue to remain so into the future. What happened in the parliamentary election is simply considered a temporary setback. We shall be back.
JOSHUA LOTAA
(CONSTITUENCY CHAIRMAN)
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