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I'm enjoying my chairmanship - Freddie Blay

The National Executive Council of the party unanimously voted to suspend its National Chairman Paul Afoko indefinitely.

Freddie Blay, first vice chairman of NPP

The first National Vice Chairman of the opposition New Patriotic Party Freddie Blay says he is enjoying his position as the acting national chairman of the party following the suspension of Mr. Paul Afoko.

The National Executive Council of the party unanimously voted a fortnight ago to suspend its National Chairman Paul Afoko indefinitely.

The party’s decision follows a petition by the Council of Elders to the Disciplinary Committee of the party asking Afoko to step aside for various misconducts.

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The first vice chairman of the party Freddie Blay according to the party's constitution is the acting chairman of the party.

The National Council a week ago affirmed the decision by the National Executive Council (NEC) to suspend Paul Afoko.

The decision was arrived at after a meeting on Thursday November 12, to deliberate and consider an appeal document submitted to the party by Mr. Afoko.

Out of 77 people, 70 voted for the suspension to be upheld, six abstained from voting, while one voted for him to be reinstated.

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But Paul Afoko, who lost his appeal to have his suspension reversed, has indicated he will head to court to seek redress over the matter.

At a press conference to rally support as he heads to court to seek redress, Paul Afoko said the party's decision to suspend him is unconstitutional.

Mr Afoko said "The National Disciplinary Committee does not have jurisdiction to determine a matter with the effect of suspending indefinitely an elected Party officer from office contrary to Article 10 of our constitution which focuses on the removal of elected party officers.

"This is a clear breach of the rules of natural justice and of the provisions of Article 4(5)(b)," he stressed.

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But Freddie Blay at a press conference said, "I'm enjoying the limelight sitting before you [journalists] as acting chairman, and you ask me in which circumstance I will prefer him [Paul Afoko] to be reinstated? It's not fair. I won't give you an answer."

Meanwhile, Afoko said, "After exhausting all the internal processes I am left with no option than to head to the court to seek interpretation of my party’s constitution. I am not only doing this for myself but for everyone else including the flagbearer of our party, because today it is the national chairman, the next time it may be a flagbearer. It is wrong for some seventy people to sit in a room somewhere in Accra and decide to remove an elected official."

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