General News of Sunday, 18 December 2016

Source: GNA

We did not destroy toll booths - Ashaiman NPP

NPP supporters NPP supporters

The Ashaiman Constituency Executives of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) have denied allegations that the party’s members in the area were engaging in unlawful acts after its flagbearer was declared winner of the 2016 presidential election.

Mr Emmanuel Chapman Kodam-Takyi, Ashaiman NPP Constituency Secretary, at a press conference said none of the party’s members had seized toilet facilities and toll booths in the constituency, vandalized state property, and attacked members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) as was reported in the media.

Mr Kodam-Takyi indicated that those who were reported to have allegedly seized toll booths at the Tema Motorway on Monday, were not from Ashaiman as according to him, their said leader one Mohammed Ali of the NPP’s Invisible Forces was not known in the constituency.

He accused the NDC of deliberately fueling the said attacks to buttress their claim that the NPP was violent.

According to him, he had received some inside information from the camp of the NDC in the constituency concerning how they planned the unlawful activities which he said included a purported attack on the MP elect for the area, Mr Ernest Henry Norgbey.

The NPP constituency secretary added that just as their opponents spread rumours of his party allegedly bringing some weapons to the area and training some militants to cause mayhem during the election, the purported seizure of toilets and other facilities and attacks on them were fictitious.

He therefore called on the Police to exercise their professional responsibilities and arrest anybody who engaged in any criminal activity irrespective of their party affiliation.

Mr Kodam-Takyi also cautioned the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly (ASHMA) to desist from illegally renewing contracts for operators of lorry parks and other facilities that have expired.

He further indicated that some Assembly Members have informed them of ASHMA’s move to sell off some parcels of lands at Community 21 to cronies and party members of the NDC.

He stressed that when the NPP takes over the administration of the Assembly, they would look into the issue and possibly take back the land as that was the only available government land left for developmental project in Ashaiman.

Mr Kodam-Takyi therefore urged the public not to buy any land from the Assembly as doing so would be at their own disadvantage.