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PNC Confusion: Apasera, Dani Baah ‘lawless’ leaders – Gen Sec

Felix AdinkraSeptember 2, 2021

73 7 minutes read

PNC General Secretary Janet Asana Nabla

The embattled General Secretary of the People’s National Convention, Ms Janet Nabla, has said the National Chairman of the party, Mr Moses Dani Baah and the 2020 flag bearer of the party, Mr David Apasera, who is also the leader, have been lawless since they joined the party.

One of such lawlessness, she alleged, is the habit of the two politicians dipping their hands into party funds without following due process.

“I am the General Secretary of a political party and you use party funds to do business and I don’t know?” she said in response to a claim by the Apasera-Dani Baah faction that the funds she claims were taken without her knowledge were used for party business.

“Ever since Apasera and Dani Baah came into PNC, they have been lawless”, she told Joshua Kojo Mensah in an interview on Class91.3FM’s 505 news programme on Wednesday, 1 September 2021.

“When they say ‘lawless’, they don’t understand the meaning of law”, she explained.

“Do you know that they wrote a letter to me quoting the constitution that article 57 section 7 of the constitution says that: ‘I, Janet, don’t execute my responsibilities well, so, based on that they are firing me for misconduct or non-performance’?”

“Do you know that when you look at our constitution, article 57 section 7 [rather] talks about the communication director, not the General Secretary?”

At a press conference on the same day, the Apasera-Dani Baah faction accused the party’s five-time flag bearer, Dr Edward Mahama, of being behind the insubordination of the General Secretary, who, according to the faction, has been suspended indefinitely.

The Communication Director of the PNC, Mr Ishaq Awudu, told journalists: “The tacit involvement of Dr Edward Mahama in all of this misconduct and insubordination by the former General Secretary, is baffling and painful”.

“It is never in doubt that he [Dr Edward Mahama] is the only one person who has benefitted from the PNC more than anyone else”, Mr Awudu said.

According to him, “Dr Edward Mahama, who, on five different occasions, had led the party as a presidential candidate for a combined period of 20 years, raised funds and got funding for the activities of the party”.

“It is, therefore, an act of bad faith for such a person to be the one stirring and encouraging a subordinate to disrespect and run down the leader and national chairman of the party”, he noted.

“His [Dr Edward Mahama] leadership as a politician is in question”, Mr Awudu later told Joshua Kojo Mensah on Class91.3FM’s 505 news programme.

Days earlier, the Edward Mahama-led faction rubbished claims by the other side that the General Secretary has been suspended indefinitely for “gross misconduct, incompetence and insubordination”.

The decision to suspend the General Secretary, according to a statement issued by the party’s Chairman, was taken on Saturday, 28 August 2021, at a National Executive Committee meeting held at the GNAT Hall in Accra.

The statement said: “The National Executive Committee, in considering and adopting a report submitted by the Disciplinary Committee of the party, unanimously took the decision to suspend the General Secretary to rid the party of indiscipline, to save itself from her persistent vile accusations and disrespect for the leadership of the party, which has undoubtedly cast the PNC in bad light”.

It noted that a petition was put before the Disciplinary Committee of the party calling for the General Secretary to answer for her conduct and stewardship but “unfortunately, she snubbed the Committee by refusing to appear before the Disciplinary Committee despite several attempts by the Committee to get her to turn up”.

“Following this, the Committee presented its report to NEC for consideration, which recommended an indefinite suspension of Madam Janet Nabla and it was unanimously endorsed by NEC in accordance with Article 57 (7) of the party constitution”.

The Chairman’s statement said “though a painful decision, the NEC of the PNC deem it appropriate to adopt this decision to protect the image of the party in the midst of all the negative press surrounding the party emanating from the conduct of the former General Secretary Madam Janet Nabla”.

“By this statement, the PNC implores the media, its supporters and sympathisers, civil society organisations, state agencies, diplomatic institutions and the general Ghanaian public to desist from holding or according her any courtesies as General Secretary of the PNC or do so at their own risk”.

However, a counter-statement signed by the General Secretary with the endorsement of multiple-time flag bearer Dr Edward Mahama and some regional chairmen of the party, said Ms Nabla is still the General Secretary of the party and also demanded the resignation of the party’s 2020 flag bearer David Apasera and the Chairman, Mr Dani Baah, for dipping their hands into the party’s coffers without recourse to due process.

“The reason for the Chairman and the leader to embark on this shameful quest to get rid of the General Secretary is not farfetched. It is on record that the hardworking General Secretary has on countless occasions complained about how the Leader and the Chairman misappropriated the party’s funds to the tune of GHS1.7 million during the 2020 elections. Just recently, after the 29th anniversary celebration of the PNC to raise funds to pay for party offices rent, an amount of GHS150 000.00 was received and deposited into the party’s account. They have withdrawn the money without the knowledge of the General Secretary to spend. The General Secretary is inviting auditors to forensically audit the party’s accounts; hence they hurriedly embark on this failed journey to discredit her”, the General Secretary’s statement said.

“Now, we demand that Mr. David Apasera and Mr. Mosses Dani Baah must resign gracefully from their respective positions within one week or face the consequences of a properly-constituted NEC rather than trying to cover their shame for their inability to constitute a proper NEC meeting; thereby dragging the party’s name in disrepute. Despite blowing off the party’s GHS150 000.00, they have failed to achieve their sinister motive”.

“Again, they must, within one week, credit the PNC account to the tune of GHS150 000.00, being the amount to pay party offices’ rent, or face criminal charges”.

Read the full statement of the Edward Mahama faction below:

IGNORE PNC PARTY CHAIRMAN’S ASSERTION THAT THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (NEC) HAS SUSPENDED THE GENERAL SECRETARY

Reference to the release purported to have emanated from a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held on the 28th August 2021 and signed by National Chairman, Moses Dani Baah, we the undersigned regional chairmen, the General Secretary, a member of the Council of Elders and a founding member at a virtual meeting held today, Sunday, 29th August 2021, call on members and sympathisers of the great PNC, civil society organisations, state agencies, diplomatic institutions and the general public, to disregard it and treat it with the greatest contempt for the following reasons:

1. There was no NEC meeting of PNC on the 28th August 2021 since the said NEC meeting fell short of forming a quorum in line with Article 45 (3) of the PNC’s constitution where it requires nine (9) out of sixteen (16) regional chairmen of the party to be present. There were only six (6) regional chairmen present out of the sixteen (16) and the remaining boycotted that said meeting in protest. A clear case of strictly going by this constitutional requirement was at the NEC meeting of 27th February, 2021 where at the start of the meeting there were eight (8) regional chairmen present. The Ashanti Regional Chairman (Mr. Kabah) who was on his way had to give his consent via a phone call for the meeting to start before his arrival. He did arrive some few minutes after the meeting started.

2. It is not true that the General Secretary snubbed the Disciplinary Committee (DC) of the party. The General Secretary was ready to appear before the Disciplinary Committee (DC) to answer the frivolous petition by the Leader, David Apasera and the National Chairman, Moses Dani Baah, and she never snubbed the DC. There are formal communications (letters) between the General Secretary and the DC on clearing some challenges before she appears, only for us to hear of the purported NEC

meeting to discuss the report of the DC. Isn’t this witch hunting and open disregard for the principle of fair hearing?

3. The reason for the Chairman and the leader to embark on this shameful quest to get rid of the General Secretary is not farfetched. It is on record that the hardworking General Secretary has on countless occasions complained about how the Leader and the Chairman misappropriated the party’s funds to the tune of GHS1.7 million during the 2020 elections. Just recently, after the 29th anniversary celebration of the PNC to raise funds to pay for party offices rent, an amount of GHS150 000.00 was received and deposited into the party’s account. They have withdrawn the money without the knowledge of the General Secretary to spend. The General Secretary is inviting auditors to forensically audit the party’s accounts; hence they hurriedly embark on this failed journey to discredit her.

Now, we demand that Mr. David Apasera and Mr. Mosses Dani Baah must resign gracefully from their respective positions within one week or face the consequences of a properly-constituted NEC rather than trying to cover their shame for their inability to constitute a proper NEC meeting; thereby dragging the party’s name in disrepute.

Despite blowing off the party’s GHS150 000.00, they have failed to achieve their sinister motive.

Again, they must, within one week, credit the PNC account to the tune of GHS150 000.00, being the amount to pay party offices’ rent, or face criminal charges.

In view of the above, we reiterate our call to our members, sympathisers, the government agencies, civil society organisations, the diplomatic institutions, the media and the general public, to continue to deal with and grant Madam Janet Asana Nabla all the courtesies due to the General Secretary of the PNC.

Comradely yours,

Mad. Janet Asana Nabla

General Secretary (0244174074)

Attendance:

1. Dr. Edward N. Mahama, Council of Elder – 0244452790

2. Comrade Aremyawu Ali, Founding Member – 0244254128

3. Mad. Janet Asana Nabla, General secretary – 0244174074

4. Mr Bala Maikankan, Greater Accra Reg. Chairman – 0243481334

5. Mr. Wanye M. Joseph, Savanna Regional Chairman – 0242103149

6. Mr. Mahamudu Musah, Ahafo Regional Chairman

7. Mr. Kwesi Amoah, Western North Regional Chairman

8. Mr. James B. Sam, Central Regional Chairman