A section of the party is putting pressure on the Asawase Member of Parliament (MP) to relinquish his role as Minority Chief Whip, having opposed the position of the minority in Parliament that the Chairman of the Appointments Committee, Mr Joe Osei Owusu, attempted bribing them to clear the Energy Minister, Mr Boakye Agyarko.

Calls premature

“The Regional Chapter of the NDC finds these calls premature, particularly when the alleged scandal is under investigation by the special ad hoc committee of Parliament, for which the Hon. Minority Chief Whip avails himself without hesitation,” a statement from the branch said.

The statement, signed by the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the NDC, Mr Yaw Owusu Bimpeh, also said in the urgent pursuit of party cohesion and reorganisation, “we urge members to be circumspect in their public pronouncements on this sensitive subject matter.”

Furthermore, the branch encouraged members to temporarily shelve or defer their public opinions until the committee’s findings were made public.

Irreparable damage

“This is to avoid possible irreparable damage that our less-informed positions might cause one of our own,” the statement added.

Relatedly, the statement urged the committee to expeditiously and comprehensively weather the storm to end the continuing public anxiety that had characterised the alleged scandal.

Finally, the statement also urged patience with leadership in spite of individual disappointments. “Let’s not allow temporary challenges to rock our reorganisation boat,” the statement concluded.