DCE, NDC Chair in Jungle Warfare

As the leadership of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) tires to patch-up the differences between two leading members of the party, namely, Messrs. Ekwow Spio Garbrah and Ato Ahwoi, reports reaching The Chronicle from Asankragwa in the Eastern region say the District Chief Executive for Amenfi West, Mr. Victor Meisu and his constituency chairman, Alhaji Abdallah Toppoh, are also engaged in power struggle over who controls the district. The confusion between the two local heavyweights in the party, has reportedly reached its zenith, with some of the regional executives being accused to taking sides. The regional Secretary of the party, Mr. J.R.D. Kobinah, confirmed in a telephone interview that �there seems to be a power struggle between the two, I don�t think it has developed into cracks yet, because we tried solving it and I think that the issue has been resolved.� Mr. Kobinah, who has been accused as one of the executives supporting the DCE against the chairman, denied supporting any of the feuding camps, �I don�t support any camp,� he insisted. Mr. Victor Meisu, who is a former Constituency Secretary of the party, according to sources within the NDC, hijacked the party immediately he was appointed by President John Evans Atta Mills as the NDC for the area. Mr. Meisu, according to the party foot soldiers, who spoke to the paper on strict condition of anonymity, allegedly developed a divide and rule tactics by giving out available positions to his friends, classmates and cronies who supported his bid as the DCE. The constituency chairman, Alhaji Toppoh, who lobbied ad campaigned strenuously for Mr. Eddy Amoh, an Educationist, for the position of DCE, is being allegedly paid back in his own coin by the DCE, which the chairman is also resisting. Newsmen gathered that, within the party that whilst the chairman is calling for policies and programmes that would ensure that the party maintains its electoral hold of the constituency, the DCE would not listen because of his belief that the chairman was interfering in his work. In a bid to get rid of him, the DCE has decided to support the second Vice Chairman of the party, Mr. Earnest Adu, Mr. Kwame Kissi Sam, Deputy Constituency Secretary, for the positions of Chairman and first Vice Chairman respectively. As part of the plot, Mr. Meisu appointed Mr. Kwame Kissi as the District Coordinator of the cocoa mass spraying programme for him to use that position to campaign. �The DCE and the coordinator of the mass spraying are destroying our party. How can they be using the programme to campaign against our own members? If the national executives of our party should sit down unconcerned, we will lose our support base here,� one of the party supporters told The Chronicle. The party foot soldiers narrated that apart from the Vice Chairman who is being supported by the DCE, other party members are being encouraged to contest against the rest of the constituency executives, including the Propaganda Secretary, nana Amornu, a perceived confidant of the Member of Parliament for the area, Hon. John Gyetuah. When the constituency chairman, Alhaji Toppoh was contacted by The Chronicle, he refused to comment, explain that he was not ready to wash his party�s dirty linen in public. �My brother, I will not comment, what is your problem, I am not ready to discuss my party�s problems in public,� he insisted. The DCE, Victor Meisu, confirmed the feud between him and the chairman, but denied undermining him. He told newsmen that since he assumed office as the DCE for the area, he had tried meeting all the executives to deliberate on the way forward for the party in the constituency, but the chairman refused to attend the meeting. He described Mr. Kwame Kissi Sam, the Deputy Secretary of the party, who is now going for the chairmanship position, as a cadre and one of the founders of the NDC in the constituency. He also denied abusing his office to satisfy his classmates, friends and cronies, insisting that he never supported any of the candidates contesting for the positions. He accused the chairman for peddling lies about him. �I told them I don�t want to meddle in the local politics in this area again.� Mr. Meisu emphasized.