NDC swears in Opare Addo as Youth Organiser despite court order

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has defied a court order that sought to stop the party from swearing in its Youth Organiser-elect, George Opare Addo.

The High Court at Amasaman, on Friday, December 16, granted an application for Interim Injunction against the National Democratic Congress, the NDC Planning Committee Chairman, Alex Segbefia, the NDC Acting Director of Elections, Daniel Amartey, the Electoral Commission and George Opare Addo restraining them, their Agents and/or assigns from swearing in George Opare Addo as the National Youth Organizer-elect of the NDC.

The defendants had been further restrained from holding Opare Addo out as the National Youth Organizer elect of the NDC.

This was after the court heard an application for interim injunction brought by Brogya Genfi, a contestant in the just-ended National Youth Organizer election of the NDC, the TEIN President of UPSA, Ibrahim Rashid and Paul Amaldago, TEIN President for the University of Ghana, Legon, who are challenging the legality of George Opare Addo’s election on grounds that same violated two expressed orders/decisions of the High Court and the expressed directives of the National Democratic Congress.

The plaintiffs have filed a Writ of Summons, seeking the annulment of the just-ended National Youth Organizer election on the basis that 22 TEIN President delegates who by the expressed orders of the High Court were supposed to vote in the elections, were excluded and/or prevented from participating in the elections and that 17 persons who were not supposed to participate in the elections were rather allowed to vote.

But after the 10th National Congress held at the Accra Sports Stadium Sunday morning, Opare Addo joined newly elected party executives to swear in the oath of office in direct defiance of the interim injunction by the court.

The decision by the party to proceed with the swearing-in of Opare Addo comes as a surprise after the Party’s Legal team acknowledged receipt of the writ on Saturday.

Mr Abraham Amaliba, the Party’s Director of Legal Affairs, confirmed in an interview with GNA that the NDC had been served by the Court.

“The Legal Team is here at the Congress grounds. I’m told the Party has been served now so I will take the document and we meet as a team and decide,” he said.