Lawyers for suspended National Chairman of the New Patriotic (NPP), Paul Afoko are optimistic the petition they have filed challenging Afoko’s suspension will yield positive results.
The suspended Chairman has filed a 14-page document to the National Council of the NPP.
[contextly_sidebar id=”xRjmvXlvgAkFjqxLwjueR5TZEi5U9sn2″]He argued that the processes leading to his suspension were illegal.
Speaking to Citi News, one of Mr. Afoko’s lawyers, Israel Ackah insisted that the NPP’s National Council is the right body to rule on the matter.
“The National Council administratively apart from the National Congress is the most significant body to actually pronounce on these matters and we are hopeful in what the council could do in hearing this protest and actually ascertaining violation of its own party constitution. And we think the council would do accordingly,” he added.
Background
Mr Afoko, who was elected the NPP National Chairman in April 2014, was suspended indefinitely at an emergency NEC meeting at the party’s headquarters at Asylum Down in Accra on Friday, October 23, 2015.
The NPP’s Disciplinary Committee had on October 21, 2015 submitted a report to the NEC of the party recommending the indefinite suspension of Mr Afoko as national chairman, citing his unilateral leadership style as a bane of the party’s progress.
At its meeting on Friday, October 23, 2015, the NEC endorsed the recommendation of the DC and asked the First Vice- Chair, Mr Freddie Blay, to act as national chairman in accordance with the party’s constitution. Meanwhile, Mr Afoko has held that he is still at post and his suspension cannot hold.
Some party activists across the country last week also demanded the immediate reinstatement of Mr Afoko, saying he had been elected and due process must be followed.
–
By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana