CPP to demonstrate on Monday over confiscated assets

The youth wing of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) will demonstrate on Monday, March 7, in an attempt to compel government to release the party’s assets confiscated after its Founder and Ghana’s first President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah was overthrown.

The CPP have in the past years demanded the release of the assets which includes buildings, arguing that the assets were unlawfully seized by the military junta that overthrew Kwame Nkrumah in 1966.

Speaking to journalists, the National Youth Organizer of the CPP, Ernesto Yeboah, said the party’s youth will picket close to the assets dotted across the country.

“We are doing this nationwide picketing to point out the irony in the fact that this is a political party that mobilizes the people of Ghana to devise for its independence and then we succeeded at it. Today, this same political party that led the fight for Ghana’s independence is not being treated fairly,” he added.

The CPP youth organizer lamented that the party “has all its assets across the length and breadth of the country confiscated.”

“We are supposed to assemble in front of our offices across the country.

In Accra, we are supposed to assemble in front of our national headquarters which is now hosting the Information Services Department; the building that was recently hosting the Ministry of Information.

We are not vagabonds, we are not violent inspired people, we are only going to assemble in front of our offices to point out the injustice that is being done against us” he emphasized.

CPP’s court action over seized assets CPP in August 2015, dragged government to the Human Rights Division of the High Court to order the return of the party’s assets.

A writ of summons filed on behalf of the party by its lawyer, Mr. Bright Akwetey, prayed the court to order the government to return its confiscated assets which have for the past 50 years been occupied by state agencies without the payment of rent. President Mahama last year promised to release the assets when some CPP officials paid a courtesy call on him but that pledge is yet to be fulfilled.

Supreme Court throws out Abu Ramadan’s suit

The Supreme Court has dismissed an application for injunction to restrain the Electoral Commission (EC) from going ahead with the Abuakwa North constituency by-election and the limited registration exercise. The suit was filed by the former National Youth Organizer of the People’s National Convention (PNC), Abu Ramadan.

The reason for the dismissal was not immediately given by the 7-member panel of judges presided over by Chief Justice Georgina Wood. The panel explained that will be done in the final ruling on the plaintiff’s substantive case.

But the Chief Justice and other members of the panel, admonished the EC to engage more with relevant stakeholders in the election to ensure a more transparent process ahead of the November polls.

Abu Ramadan in his application argued that it will be “contemptuous” for the Electoral Commission to conduct the by-election in Abuakwa using the current voters’ register, seeing he is challenging the credibility of same in court.

He further stated that the public will suffer irreparable damage if the EC is allowed to go ahead with the limited registration before the determination of his substantive case.

He was seeking the following reliefs

• Given the pendency of the substantive suit and the unresolved issues motivating same, it would be improper and pre judicial for first respondent to conduct the announced limited registration exercise or indeed any registration exercise and if not restrained, the problems attending to the current voters’ register would be compounded at additional cost to the republic and its citizens.

• Again it will be prejudicial and contemptuous for first respondent to conduct any public election including the Abuakwa North constituency by election using the current voters register and thereby allowing unqualified persons to participate in determining this country’s future.

• With respect, the intended limited voters registration exercise and by elections would interfere with the administration of justice and undermine the judicial process in view of the pendency of this suit.

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