NDC Congress In Limbo

Dr Kwabena Adjei, NDC National Chairman
THERE appears to be no end in sight for the troubles of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), as a legal stalemate between parties to a suit before a Kumasi high court over the impending national and regional executive elections was further pushed forward, putting the elections in limbo.

The NDC is expected to conclude the ongoing electoral process from branch to national level by the close of this month; but it appears the ruling party may not succeed because of the litigation, causing a stumbling block to the process.

Lawyers in the suit yesterday engaged in hot legal exchanges over whether counsel for the NDC works from a registered law firm and therefore has the legal right to defend his client in the case.

Lawyers for plaintiff, Felix Datsomor, questioned the absence of registration number of the law chamber on applications filed in court on behalf of the NDC, arguing that it offended the Legal Profession Act.

They insisted that the absence of the law firm's registration number on the applications invalidated the document, and could therefore not be admissible in court, until the right thing was done.

But lawyer Nana Akwasi Boatey, who stood in for the NDC, disagreed with the assertion and called for it to be dismissed since the argument, he indicated, was not grounded in law.

He accused his colleague of unduly delaying the process, which assertion lawyer Datsomor parried away.

The court adjourned the case to October 14, 2014 for ruling after the judge, Justice Jacob Bonoo, had remarked: 'As a ruling party, you need to put your house in order to be able to govern, and not fight in court.'

The plaintiff, Njonolah Linus, who is the immediate past president of Tertiary Institution Network (TEIN) of the party at the Akrokerri College of Education, instituted the action against the NDC and its national officers for allegedly overstaying their mandated tenure of office.

The plaintiff said the defendants had no business spearheading the impending elections to choose fresh officers for the regional and national executive committees, asking them to desist from going ahead with any processes leading to such elections.

According to Linus, without re-election, as contained in the constitution of the NDC, the executive members could not lawfully act for and on behalf of the first defendant without a valid renewal of their respective terms of office through elections.

He alleged that the defendants were using their expired mandates to disqualify most card-bearing members of the NDC from taking part in the impending elections.

The plaintiff said national and regional executive members had wilfully failed and or refused to observe the provisions of the constitution of the first defendant (NDC), while purporting to be acting for and on behalf of the party.

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From Ernest Kofi Adu, Kumasi