The suspended second National Vice Chairman of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Sammy Crabbe, said Wednesday that he does not recognise John Boadu as the acting General Secretary of the party.
“There’s nothing like that…in our Constitution,” he told Bola Ray on Starr Chat. “It is better for people to shine their eyes, open them up and look at things…”
The National Executive Committee (NEC) of the NPP in December 2015 affirmed the decision of the party’s Disciplinary Committee to suspend its Second National Vice-Chairman, Sammy Crabbe and the General Secretary Kwabena Agyei Agyepong. The decision to suspend the two was taken after members of the NEC held a crucial meeting on the matter at the party’s headquarters in Accra.
Long before the NEC meeting came to a close, some supporters of the party converged outside the party’s headquarters popping champagne in a jubilant mood, apparently in anticipation of the announcement.
Mr. Crabbe who dismissed his suspension as illegal headed for Court to get him reinstated but an Accra High Court dismissed his suit in 2016.
According to the judge, Justice Sir Dennis Adjei, the national disciplinary committee of the NPP has jurisdiction to hear and punish anyone who had been found to have breached some rules of the party.
Mr. Crabbe said despite respecting the court’s decision, he still held the view that his suspension is ridiculously illegal.
“I really do not believe that it should be allowed [their suspension],” he declared, saying, “First all, it is a very difficult thing to get elected as a national officer…going into the constituencies you meet people you look them in the eye, sometimes you ride rough, you go into people’s bedrooms, sleep rough, they look into your eyes, make promises to them and then you get elected. The delegates are not stupid. They look at you and elect and then you sit there. So, I just do not want to accept that people who have never been elected can just sit down and decide they would just negate the will of the people on the ground.”
When Bola Ray pointed out to him that he contested the decision in court and lost, Mr. Crabbe snapped, “It doesn’t really mean that it was right. It was wrong and we needed to put it out there.”
Asked if he is bitter following his suspension, he said, “I’m not. I’m not a bitter guy. I’m not petty…I mean it is the last thing that I’d do.”
According to him, the suspension spree had nothing to do with him and that he was bundled in because of his criticism of it.
“They were going after Paul Afoko and Kwabena Agyepong. It had nothing to do with me…I got in to say…this is wrong, describing it as a coup d’état,” Mr. Crabbe remarked.
Source: Ghana/StarrFMonline.com/103.5FM
