CPP crisis: Kwabena Bomfeh accuses Bright Akwetey of ‘coup’

The Acting General Secretary of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), Mr James Kwabena Bomfeh, has accused a former flag bearer aspirant of the party, Mr Bright Akwetey, of leading what he describes as a “coup d’etat” within the party.

In a statement, Mr Bomfeh accused Mr Akwetey, who is also the chairman of the party’s legal and constitutional affairs committee, of convening an “illegal” meeting at the party’s headquarters last Friday.

The statement added that the party was able to quell the said ‘coup d’etat’ after it called on the police to secure the party’s headquarters to prevent the said meeting.

Injunction

According to Mr Bomfeh, the Mr Akwetey–led group later regrouped at another venue and issued a statement purportedly convening a central committee meeting to discuss matters relating to the party’s national congress, an action which it says was against a court injunction secured by Mr Akwetey.

“The said meeting was an attempt to circumvent and disregard the very court injunction secured against the party by the same individuals who secured it — Bright Akwetey and Yaw Asamoah. They sought to draw the party into contempt of an injunction secured against it.

He accused the 3rd Vice Chairman of the CPP, Alhaji Tijani Abdul-Rahman, of usurping the powers of the Acting National Chairperson of the CPP, Hajia Hamdatu Ibrahim Haruna, by signing the statement convening the central committee meeting.

The Acting General Secretary said the Bright Akwetey led-group erroneously claimed the court injunction barred the Acting National Chairperson from performing her duties.

“Neither the injunction application nor the injunction granted by the court makes the closet allusion to or questions the legitimacy or capacity of the Acting Chairperson and leader. For the avoidance of doubt, Hajia Hamdatu Ibrahim Haruna remains the Acting Chairperson and leader of the party, the Acting General Secretary stated.

Legal action

In February this year, Mr Akwetey and Mr Yaw Asamoah, another member of the CPP, dragged the CPP, its Acting National Chairman and the Acting General Secretary to court to stop the two officers of the party from making any moves to organise National Congress and National Delegates Congress of the party.

They also wanted the court to declare the central committee of the party constituted by the two national officers as an illegal entity not recognised under the CPP Constitution.

The plaintiffs accused the two national officers of various illegalities, claiming that the suit was in the best interest of the party.

Apart from the substantive suit, the plaintiffs further filed an application for interlocutory injunction to bar the two national officers from indulging in any activities complained in the suit until the final determination of the suit.

On April 30, 2020, an Accra High Court, presided over by Justice Mariama Sammo, granted the application and restrained the Acting National Chairman and Acting General Secretary or any of their agents or assigns from taking any steps that would lead to the National Congress and National Delegates Congress of the party.

However, the court ordered the plaintiffs to sign an undertaking to pay damages to the defendants in the event they lose the substantive suit in which the court determines that they were not entitled to the injunctive relief.