NDC youth lock out assembly members at Breman-Asikuma for failing to endorse President’s nominee
Angry youth of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) took the assembly members of the Asikuma Odoben Brakwa District Assembly hostage last Wednesday when they failed to confirm Mr Albert Kwesi Inkoom as the District Chief Executive (DCE).
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The nominee, 51, who was spotted wearing a Woodin long-sleeved shirt and a pair of black trousers with a pair of black shoes, would have replaced Mr Samuel Adom Botchway, who was recently dismissed by President John Dramani Mahama if he had been endorsed.
The heavily built youth who besieged the premises of the assembly hall threatened to beat up the assembly members who failed to endorse the President’s nominee after each was allegedly paid GH¢2,000.
Demands of the angry youth
The youth, who were mostly ‘macho’ men, also demanded that if the assembly members had decided not to endorse the nominee, then they should refund the money paid to them which was intended to influence them to vote for the nominee.
Not even the presence of the Central Regional Minister, Mr Kweku Ricketts-Hagan; Mr Samuel Oppong and Mr Moses Jehu-Appiah, the Agona West MCE and the Gomoa East DCE, respectively, could deter the irate youth from carrying on with their agenda.
Personnel of the Ghana Police Service deployed to the venue had a hectic task controlling the angry youth from physically attacking the assembly members.
Some of the youth told the Daily Graphic in an interview that they had been reliably informed by the constituency executives that each assembly member received GH¢2,000 to enable them to endorse the nominee.
According to them, they had high hopes that the nominee would be overwhelmingly confirmed by the 46-member assembly and that they were very surprised that the newly appointed DCE could not get the required two-thirds majority.
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The drama started immediately the results of the election were declared by the District Electoral Officer, Mr Frederick Appiagyei.
Results
At the end of the voting, 25 assembly members voted in favour of the appointee, while 21 voted against him.
He (nominee) needed 31 votes to be confirmed as the DCE for the area.
The youth then charged at the assembly members and started hurling insults at them for not redeeming the promise made to the nominee to confirm him. Not too long after the voting, information went viral and hundreds of youths thronged the venue to deal with the assembly members.
Some women, who could not control their disbelief and emotions, invoked curses on the assembly members for allegedly taking the ‘bribe’ and subsequently failing to confirm Mr Inkoom.
A suggestion by the Presiding Member of the assembly, Mr Ishaque Anakwa, for the assembly members to go out for a short meeting to pave the way for a second round of voting on the same day was fiercely resisted by the youth, who threatened to retrieve the money paid to each of them or beat them up if they stepped out.
The officials, sensing danger, met within the premises with a final decision to postpone the election which would be held within the next 10 days.
A visibly worried regional minister subsequently left the premises, together with other dignitaries, under the protection of police officers.
Some of the assembly members who attempted to leave the hall were physically manhandled by the youth, but the timely intervention of the police restored order. However, the youth booed and hooted at the assembly members as they left the premises.
Address
Earlier in an address, Mr Ricketts-Hagan had urged the assembly members to confirm the nominee to enable the assembly to improve the socio-economic well-being of the people in the area.
According to him, the assembly urgently needed a DCE to propel its growth, since the absence of one was thwarting the developmental agenda of the district.
He admitted that as the acting DCE for the area, he was overstretched to effectively discharge that duty.
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He, therefore, called on the assembly members to fulfil their constitutional obligation of endorsing the nominee to help the assembly to achieve its desired growth.
Nominee
Mr Inkoom, a chartered accountant, had earlier promised to build upon the foundations of his predecessor in order to contribute his quota to the development of the district.
He appealed to the assembly members to have the progress of the district at heart and confirm his appointment.