Reports reaching New Crusading GUIDE suggest that tension is brewing in the Jomoro branch of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The development follows what has been described by NDC members in the constituency as subtle moves by some executives in the Western Region to allow one particular person, Ms Dorcas Afo-Toffey, contest the parliamentary election next year (2020).

In the view of the youth, Ms Afo-Toffey is not a registered member of the party in the Jomoro constituency, and therefore, does not have any locus to contest on the ticket of the party in the area.

In the wake of that, New Crusading GUIDE is reliably informed that the Jomoro NDC youth are determined to scuttle any attempt(s) to give Ms Afo-Toffey the space to contest the 2020 parliamentary election Jomoro.

Meanwhile, a statement by a group calling itself the Coalition of Jomoro NDC Youth issued at the weekend and signed by its Convener, Lazarus Appiah, has warned that there would be serious cracks and internal wrangling should the decision to allow Ms Afo-Toffey to run as the NDC parliamentary candidate for Jomoro be carried through.

According to the statement, the only time they acquainted themselves with Ms Afo-Toffey was on June 23, 2018, when she was introduced to the party for the first time during a constituency congress at Ezinlibo.

Present at that ceremony, the statement said, included the following personalities: “Mr Peter Augustine Blay—former CDS, our Council of elders’ Chairman, Mr J E Ackah— former MP of Jomoro, Mrs Gifty Bebudu, Mr Redman Blay, then Ag Chairman and Mr Sylvester N. Dadieh (former DCE).”

“…She confessed on that day that she used to stay in the USA but has come to join us to build our dear party NDC,” recounted the statement. Ms Afo-Toffey’s introduction, the statement said, invited thunderous applause at least for the simple reason that Jomoro NDC was getting a new member.

Besides, the statement defended the Constituency Chairman, Nana Toku, whom some NDC members in the constituency have accused of campaigning against Ms Afo-Toffey. That accusation was made when Nana Toku recently met all the branch executives of Half Assini Zone in the Jomoro municipality, it said.

“…Jomoro NDC has not yet open nominations for parliamentary candidates, so we ask, do we have Parliamentary Aspirants for now, for you to say Nana Toku campaigns against one parliamentary candidate in the Jomoro constituency?,” it asked.

The statement wondered how within a space of six months Ms Afo-Toffey could become an aspiring parliamentary candidate.

“ Perhaps we have forgotten so soon what happened to us in 2016. Just after our humiliating defeat in 2016 general election, various attempts have been made to bring unity into our party and Prof Kwesi Botchwey Committee stands tall.

…One of the recommendations made was that power should be strengthened at the grassroots, and one way to achieve this is for every NDC member to go to his or her branch to register as a member,” the statement said.

Against this backdrop, the statement averred: “Unless it is proven beyond any means that the membership registration exercise that was performed was an exercise in futility, we can say on authority that Dorcas Toffey is not a registered member in the Jomoro constituency hence has not got any backing to be a parliamentary candidate.”

Furthermore, the statement noted that allowing Afo-Toffey to contest the parliamentary elections will mean a “lack of credibility, confidence, and trust” in their leaders and grassroots members.

The statement also cautioned the team Dorcas to refrain from such acts or else they were ready to match them “boot-for-boot.”