VICTOR SMITH IS USELESS - ANYIDOHO

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Deputy General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Koku Anyidoho, has taken a swipe at colleague party member - Victor Smith - describing him as someone who speaks like a ‘useless man.’

 “Victor Smith should not sit on the touch-line and behave like a useless man. If he is man enough, he should jump into the arena and join the fight and stop talking from the talking touch-line,” Koku Anyidoho fired on Okay FM in Accra yesterday.

Mr. Smith, who is the immediate-past High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, had queried the national executives of the NDC for inviting former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Martin A.B.K. Amidu, to initiate disciplinary proceedings against him (Amidu), and failing to invite former President Jerry John Rawlings - who he believes was also bringing the name of the party into disrepute.

Victor, former Eastern Regional Minister, said it would be unfair to summon Martin Amidu before the NDC Disciplinary Committee and leave out ex-President Jerry John Rawlings, as many believe the utterances of these two stalwarts caused the NDC a lot of problems. 

The former envoy’s comment was in reaction to the two members of the NDC - Evans Amankwaa and Abigail Mensah -  who petitioned the party’s hierarchy to take disciplinary action against Mr Amidu, citing his endless epistles and public utterances that had brought the NDC into disrepute.

 Quoting Article 47 of the party’s constitution, the two are convinced that the conduct of Mr Martin Amidu is in breach of the party’s constitution. 

According to Mr Smith, “Personally, I think it will be difficult that the party leadership will summon Martin Amidu over his utterances that bring the party into disrepute without calling on ex-President Rawlings. You can’t call one party stalwart and leave the other; that will be really bad. We need to look for a better way of dealing with this situation,” he told Accra-based Kasapa FM.

Currently, two failed NDC parliamentary candidates want the party’s leadership to discipline Mr. Amidu for saying among other things, that then President John Dramani Mahama had appointed Mrs. Charlotte Osei as Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC) in order for her to rig the 2016 general election for the then ruling party.

Mr. Smith, who was once spokesperson for former President Rawlings but got fired through a text message, did not understand why Mr. Amidu should be invited by the party but Mr. Rawlings - the founder of the NDC - should not.

Mr. Smith’s utterance appeared to have irked Mr Koku Anyidoho, who felt the former High Commissioner was trying to dictate to the party’s executives on the issue.

“I am not afraid of him; every time you sit on the touch-line and want to indict the National Executives,” an incensed Koku Anyidoho slammed Mr. Smith, adding, “So Victor Smith, if he is man enough and brave, he can petition the party against Rawlings at the headquarters.”

He continued, “We are getting sick and tired of him; he is not an executive member of the party and he should stop disturbing our ears. He should petition against Rawlings and stop the useless fight he is propagating in the party, trying to indict the national executives. He has said things but I have chosen to ignore him.

“If he is a man with enough courage and brevity, he should go ahead. If he is a man enough he should go into the ring and fight and stop indicting national executives on the touchlines. If he is a man I am challenging him to petition against the former president and we will look into it. He is not an executive member of the party…..he should stop disturbing our ears.”