Manhyia North NPP boiling
After seven postponements for various reasons, the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the NPP has called for a rerun of all elections in the Manhyia North Constituency from the polling station level to the constituency executive level before the election of a parliamentary aspirant can take place.
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The party explained in a latest letter signed by its Acting General Secretary, Mr John Buadu, that it arrived at the decision considering a Supreme Court ruling on April 9, 2014, which called for the annulment of the existing constituency album and ordered a rerun.
Sharp reaction
However, in a sharp reaction, some members of the party in the constituency have sworn fire and brimstone that they would resist any attempt to rerun the elections because it is a ploy by some unseen hands to ensure that the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP), Collins Owusu Amankwa, loses the bid to lead the party again.
At a charged meeting in Manhyia North, the party members, holding sticks and stones and chanting war songs, first denied that there was any such Supreme Court ruling and insisted that after the re-election of the 197 polling station executive members, nothing new had happened to warrant such a U-turn.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic after the meeting of the supporters of Mr Owusu Amankwah, Mr Victor Opoku, a member of the Manhyia North Patrons, said the only Supreme Court ruling on such matter concrned Kumawu Constituency and not Manhyia North.
NPP NEC letter
Dated April 1, 2016, the NPP NEC letter recounted various interventions by the various groups and persons, including the Campaign Manager, Mr Peter Mac Manu, and the acting General Secretary, Mr John Boadu, to seek a political settlement to the issue.
He mentioned the one that led to the rerun of 197 polling stations which could not solve the problem because of the “entrenched position taken by the aggrieved factions in the current impasse, making it practically impossible for a political solution to be reached.”
“The National Executive Committee has, therefore, taken a decision to rerun all elections in the Manhyia North Constituency from the polling station level to the constituency executive level,” the statement added.
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Postponements
It all started when after suspended General Secretary, Mr Kwabena Adjei Agyapong, issued a release that 48 constituencies, including Manhyia North, were to vote on June 13, 2015 but a party placed a court injunction on the polls.
During the court processes, the party agreed on October 15, 2015 for elections to be held but concerns were raised about the process and were rescheduled to October 17, which was again shifted to October 24, 2015.
Less than 24 hours to the October 24, 2015, some members challenging the incumbent revived the legal tussle and went back to court, stalling the process once again.
While in court, the NEC of the party tried to use political means to amicably resolve the issue, leading to the setting up of the Mac Manu-led committee which included the Minority Leader, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah- Bonsu and Mr F. F. Antoh.
After the back-and-forth situation, 194 polling stations were rerun, after which a road map was drawn for the elections for another 43 out of the 93 polling stations. February 29, 2016 was settled on for the elections of the 43 but was again moved to March 3, 2016.
Then the road was cleared for the election of a parliamentary aspirant between the incumbent Collins Owusu Amankwa and his only challenger Nana Osei Banfo to represent Manhyia North on the ticket of the NPP.
It was scheduled for March 7, but it was again pushed to the 13th of the same month and then to March 20. This was the last postponement.