Sammy Crabbe’s suspension illegal
The suspended National Chairman of the New Partriotic Party (NPP) has informed the Human Rights Division of the Accra High Court that the party’s suspension of its 2nd National Vice Chairman, Mr Sammy Crabbe, is illegal.
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Mr Afoko, who is also fighting his suspension in court in a separate suit, yesterday told the Human Rights Division of the Accra High Court that the Disciplinary Committee that suspended Mr Crabbe acted illegally because the appointment of one of its members, Mrs Gifty Kusi, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tarkwa –Nsuaem in the Western Region, was unconstitutional.
“The appointment of Gifty Kusi was unconstitutional. Her name was never submitted to the National Council and her swearing- in by the 1st National Vice Chairman (Freddie Blay) is also unconstitutional,” he said.
Mr Crabbe is in court to fight his suspension and Mr Afoko is his first witness.
Led by Mr Isaac Ackah, counsel for Mr Crabbe, to give his evidence-in –chief, Mr Afoko spoke for about three hours.
His testimony was, however, interrupted by intermittent blackout that rocked the court complex.
The sporadic blackout led to stops on numerous occasions during the testimony.
Appointment
The appointment of Mrs Kusi to the National Disciplinary Committee of the party in October 2015 is one of the issues in contention in the case.
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Both Mr Crabbe and Mr Afoko, in affidavits supporting their respective suits, are claiming that the decision of the Disciplinary Committee to suspend them was unconstitutional because she was not legally appointed and approved per the dictates of the NPP constitution.
The MP was appointed to the committee to replace Mr William O Boafo, the MP for Akuapem-North in the Eastern Region as a representative of the NPP’s parliamentary caucus on the committee.
Mr Boafo had written to the party to be replaced on medical grounds.
‘I was at post’
Mr Afoko claimed in his testimony that even though he was at post he never initiated the process that led to the appointment of Mrs Kusi.
According to him, the actions of Mr Blay were against the NPP’s constitution because he (Afoko) never directed him to swear-in the MP to become part of the disciplinary committee.
He explained that per the NPP’s constitution, the National Chairman was supposed to perform such a function and thus,the 1st National Vice Chairperson could only perform the role of the National Chairman upon express instructions of the National Chairman.
At that point, Mr Ackah asked him whether Mr Blay performed his duties as National Chairman because he was out of town.
Mr Afoko answered in the negative, stating that he was in the country and at post when the appointment and swearing-in of Mrs Kusi was done.
Adjournment
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Dennis Dominic Adjei, a Court of Appeal judge with additional jurisdiction over the High Court, adjourned the case to May 4, 2016, to allow counsel for the NPP, Mr Godfred Dame, to cross-examine Mr Afoko.