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Opinions of Friday, 13 November 2015

Columnist: Sarpong, Justice

Mr Crabbe, Go To Hell And Take Afoko With You

NPP Second Vice chair Sammy Crabbe has vowed not contest for any position in the largest opposition party again if the decision to suspend National Chairman, Paul Afoko is not reversed.He has also severed ties with Freddie Blay's administration vowing never to step in any meeting he calls.


"If he convenes a meeting I'm not going. If I do next time you'll be asking me to recognise a coup d'état. I can't just accept that. I don't fear. I'm courageous," Crabbe stressed."

I will say adieu to Mr Sammy Crabbe and he should not forget to drag Mr. Paul Afoko with him to hell. The internal Npp wrangling is a recondite issue that should be approached with tact and boldness and the time has come for crossroads to be crossed in order to safe the party from implosion.

The time has come for this ferhoodle in Npp to be settled once and for all and if it is going to be a mass suspension of some people or the Party to be divided into two with a splinter group led by the Crabbe/Afoko group, so be it. The leadership of Npp has failed the teeming supporters of this great party with this never ending saga of infighting amongst the leadership. Since the election of Paul Afoko and Kwabena Agyapong at the Tamale congress, Npp has been tottering on implosion due to the ignis fatuus agenda of Paul Afoko/Kwabena Agyapong faction including this Crabbe guy.

It all started when Afoko brother and some people murdered the Upper East Region Npp chairman, Adams Mahama who was perceived to be a staunch Nana Akuffo Addo supporter and a political nemesis to Paul Afoko.

As a political party, the main agenda of Npp like any other party is to win political power and the moment Nana Akuffo Addo was voted by more than 94% of the Npp delegates, he became the head of the Party and all other individual objectives should have been subjugated for the good of the party by pursing the sole aim of getting Nana Akuffo Addo elected as the President of Ghana but the Afoko group has a different agenda.

Now Paul Afoko has been suspended as the Party chairman by the National Executive Committee (NEC) and Party Elders. Paul Afoko, if he wants to protest his suspension should use the Party internal structures instead or organizing protests at the Party headquarters by busing people from other areas which has resulted in another Npp supporter from Asawase constituency in Ashanti region murdered by Afoko supporters.

As a member of a group, you are bound to follow the rules and decisions taken by the leadership of that group and if you insist to pursue an individual agenda as this Crabbe guy is doing, then you cannot be a team player and ought to leave.Paul Afoko has been suspended by the National Executive Committee (NEC) of Npp and until he is reinstated, the new Chairman rules. The way I see it, NPP might even be better off if these individuals leave and form their own political party. I will rather get rid of these saboteurs in Npp and lose the 2016 elections and come back in 2020 with a formidable united and patriotic party members with Dr Bawumiah as the flag bearer since Nana Akuffo Addo will not be available to run again due to old age. A party that fears to lose an election cannot win one. As it is now, we have too many individuals in the Party like Afoko group and people like Wereko Brobbey, Nyaho Nyaho Tamakloe, Arthur Kennedy and others who are doing everything to get the aspirations of Nana Akuffo Addo and Npp torpedoed in 2016 something drastic needs to be done if we want to salvage anything in 2016.

When I made a comment, Crabbe, you can go to hell with Afoko on Sammy Crabbe's "Bring back Afoko or I will never stand for NPP position again", one G.K Berko, a known CPP supporter and closeted NDC admirer made a comment that, "this isn't the time for that kind of foolhardy psychological verbal machismo. It isn't how tough you can portray your side of the argument to be that would help resolve the issues at stake in the Party. What you may have to think about more seriously is the likelihood that others might follow Mr. Crabbe's path to further weaken the NPP. If many more of the prominent leaders in the Party begin to decline their active participation or representation in the NPP, many ordinary members who support these leaders would also begin to withdraw their support for the Party. It is most disheartening that the NPP leaders who have colluded to victimize Afoko seem to underestimate the harm their illogical unfair treatment of him could do to the Party."

As NPP patriots, we should be wondering why these NDC sympathizers are supporting Afoko and his gang of moles inside our party.

My answer to G.K Berko and his like minded NDC supporters who want to see the end of NPP is that, we are not going anywhere but we will stand and protect Ghana from NDC who are stealing everything in Ghana that is not bolted down with Fort Knox padlocks.

G.K Berko's argument is illogical and stupid. Is Npp the first party to suspend some members from its fold? Sometimes you have to take harsh decisions that will be inimical initially but will permanently strengthen the party in future. If you fear to lose, you can never win.

Ndc went through the same teething problems when Dr Obed Asamoah when in opposition who broke away and formed a splinter party from Ndc. Did Ndc vanish from the Ghana political scene?

Ndc suspended one Professor Aryee or Dr Aryee who was their General Secretary for an allegation of taking $2500 from NPP before Asiedu Nketiah became the General Secretary and the Party moved on.

Ndc recently suspended Kofi Adams for bribery allegations and eventually reinstated him and he came back and won a top post in NFC. Dr Obed Asamoah also came back to Ndc after his splintered party failed miserably in the 2008 elections. Let all disgruntled Afoko backers leave Npp and form a party. They are weakening the party for being in and leaking the party election strategies to their opponents.

The Ashanti Regional Party Chairman, Antwi Bosiako was once suspended as the Party constituency Chairman from Bosomtwe and worked his way back to become the Regional Chairman. In any Party or group, there are laws that its members should follow and failing to do that results in a form of punishment. If people in NPP don't want to abide by the laws of the Party, "The road is on their face", they should leave and close the door behind them. We should not be afraid of people leaving the party and forming another one. We experienced this phenomenon before in 1979 and we are still here.

No splinter party in Ghana has ever won an election or has been able to survive after one election circle. If Crabbe, Afoko, Agyapong, Nyaho Tamakloe, Wereko Brobbey and Arthur Kennedy want to go and form their own party, "THE ROAD IS ON THEIR FACE"

Justice Sarpong

(CARDINAL of TRUTH)