Regional News of Monday, 30 November 2015

Source: Daily Guide

Suhum MCE resigns

Samuel Fletcher Kwabi, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) of Suhum in the Eastern Region, has resigned.

The MCE was said to have resigned owing to frustrations he was going through at the assembly and a possible shakeup at the place.

Last week, some municipal and district chief executives were relieved of their appointments and replaced by new hands.

In a two-page resignation letter, Mr Samuel Kwabi, popularly known as Adumawura, sent to the Chief of Staff on 23rd November 2015 – a copy of which was sighted by DAILY GUIDE – he stated, “As a Chief Executive for the past seven years, I had to implement many hard but cogent decisions of the Assembly, some of which brought fierce resistance and confrontation from some party functionaries both within and outside the municipality.”

According to him, there are many more of such decisions which if not implemented, could render the assembly impotent and ineffective; but now that he had lost in the parliamentary primary, any attempt to implement them was likely to be misconstrued.

“In order not to worsen the already volatile situation, I deem it very honorable to bow out of office when the applause is loudest and call for my replacement in the interest of the great NDC party. As stipulated in my letter of appointment, I wish to seize this opportunity to serve his Excellency the President, the mandatory three-month notice of my resignation from office as the chief executive,” Mr. Kwabi underscored.

When contacted by DAILY GUIDE, the 74-year-old MCE revealed that the party members had been undermining him since he was appointed as the MCE by the late President John Evans Atta Mills in 2009. He said in some instances, some of the past NDC constituency executives conspired with members of the Land Lords Association to embark on a demonstration against him over increases in property rates, among other decisions.

News of Mr Kwabi’s resignation has been received by people in the municipality, including some party gurus and government officials, with shock because they claim he is a hardworking MCE.

The MCE had accused some top officials and government functionaries of financing his contender in the just ended parliamentary primaries of the NDC, Margaret Ansei.

DAILY GUIDE gathered that during the primaries, almost all the former constituency executives at Suhum as well as past council of elders rallied behind Margaret Ansei to embark on her campaign, leading to her victory.

In a related development, President Mahama last week sacked two MMDCEs in the persons of Dr. Owusu Acheampong, New Juaben and Mark Annor Dompreh, Nsawam/Adoagyiri municipalities, who had been replaced by Kwabena Okyere Kusi, former NDC chairman and Ben Ohene Ayeh, current Public Relations Manager of Ghana Tourism Authority respectively, while George Mensah Akpalu, former MCE for Asamankese whose term in office ended this year, has been re-nominated for the Lower West Akim Municipal Assembly.