Chairman Wontumi Defies NPP'S NEC

Executives of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Ashanti Region seem to be on a coalition course with the National Election Committee (NEC) of the party, as the Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, has openly defied a directive for elections to be held in four Constituencies in the Ashanti Region. �I have cancelled that directive. It cannot happen in Ashanti,� the Regional Chair, who is popularly known as Chairman Wontumi fumed. He made these comments on NEAT 100.9, in response to a Press Release by the National Election Committee calling for re-elections to be held in Juaben, Manhyia North, Kumawu and Ejisu Constituencies. According to the communiqu�, �the National Elections Committee (NEC) having heard the petitioners and respondents case has come to the conclusion that the laid down procedures and rules were not followed and as a result, people were deliberately disenfranchised in the elections purported to have taken place. Accordingly, the National Elections Committee (NEC) has directed that the Polling Stations, Electoral Area Coordinators and Constituency elections at the following Constituencies must be re-run�. In addition to the four Constituencies in the Ashanti Region, there are three other Constituencies, namely; Okaikoi South, Okaikoi North and Krowor Constituencies, all in the Greater Accra Region, where the elections must be re-run, according to the statement. But reached for his comments on the NEC's directives, Chairman Wontumi vowed not to comply with the order saying in his view, "there is a chain of command in the party and instructions cannot be issued from the National Headquarters without consulting the grassroots". "...personally, i think the directive smacks of disrespect on the part of the NEC for the Ashanti Regional executives because no formal communiqu� has been issued to us (Ashanti Regional executives) on the matter," he added.