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The highly publicised ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential and parliamentary primaries slated for Saturday, November 7, 2015, is unlikely to come off as planned.

This possible development follows an intended application for an interim injunction being sought by some sitting NDC Members of Parliament (MPs) and aspiring parliamentary candidates to stop the primaries, Today has gathered.

Credible sources close to some of the MPs disclosed to Today that the MPs, particularly those who anticipate losing their seats in the forth-coming parliamentary primaries, have described the Biometric Voter Register (BVR) membership cards which would be used to vote in both the presidential and the parliamentary primaries as “invalid membership cards,” hence their (MPs) decision to drag the National Executive Council (NEC) of the party to court in their bid to place embargo on the November 7, 2015 polls.

The statement of application, which is likely to be filed this week, Today gathered, would also be praying the court to stop the leadership of the NDC “from using what some NDC MPs have described as “killer” biometric voter registered membership cards to vote in the November 7 primaries, until the final determination of the substantive suit.”

According to our sources, the MPs intimate that the intended move by the leadership of the NDC will not only undermine the peace and tranquility of the country, but will cause chaos and likely result in bloody clashes between supporters of the NDC during the yet to be held parliamentary primaries.

The sources explained to Today that the MPs in the statement will also pray the court not to allow the leadership of the NDC to take the prevailing peaceful atmosphere in the country for granted, “since there is no doubt among reasonable law-abiding citizens of Ghana that there is a simmering tension over who is qualified to be a member of the NDC to vote in the primaries.

The planned action by the MPs, Today was reliably informed, followed the official report lodged with NEC by some of the MPs, delegates, polling station executives, supporters and members of the party in which they alleged that some constituency executives and chairmen had condoned and connived with some of the current sitting DCEs who have filed their nomination forms to contest parliamentary primaries by registering their favourites and family members, ostensibly to vote for them in the forthcoming primaries.

The sources revealed that the MPs were angry because when they went to their constituencies after Parliament had been on recess, they detected that during the massive nationwide NDC’s BVR exercise, the constituency chairmen made arrangement with sitting district chief executives who are currently contesting parliamentary primaries with them (sitting MPs) with the sole intention to disallow party faithful(s) who they thought were close associates with MPs to register to become certified members of the NDC.

The sources had this to say: “Look referring to (this reporter) we have hard documentary evidence that implicates some unscrupulous DCEs who have filed their nomination forms to contest the parliamentary primaries on how they connived with constituency chairmen of the NDC who supervised the just-ended national biometric voter membership registration exercise of the party to take advantage of the absence of the MPs in the constituencies to stop their close associates and family members from registering during the BVR exercise to become certified members, a development that will allow them to vote on November 7.

“…in fact if some of the MPs had not come out to explain that all registered NDC members would have the chance to vote in the forthcoming presidential and parliamentary primaries of the party many would have thought they cannot vote,” the sources said.

“…unfortunately when the MPs and some aspiring parliamentary candidates together with delegates and polling station executives petitioned the National Executive Council of the NDC and copied the Director of Elections, Mr. Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, General Secretary, Mr. Johnson Asiedu Nketia, they did nothing about it, the sources averred.

According to the sources, the MPs intend to institute court action against the leadership of the NDC over what they consider as invalid BVR membership cards.

The NDC BVR membership cards, according to NEC, is aimed at helping the party to establish its actual membership, thereby help avert electoral malpractices, irregularities, stealing and violence which characterised previous presidential and parliamentary primaries of the governing party.

In an interview with Today over the weekend, some of the MPs who spoke on condition of anonymity lashed out at constituency chairmen of the party in all the two hundred and seventy five (275) constituencies in the country.

They accused of them of conniving with some current DCEs to hide the biometric voters registration forms and giving them out to their favourites and family members to register to become certified members of the party.

According to the MPs, the DCEs and chairmen of the NDC took advantage at the time that they (the MPs) were in Parliament performing legislative duties to carry out the BVR exercise in people’s homes, traditional areas to register them for the NDC membership, a development they described as “criminal and illegal.”

On these grounds, the MPs called on the leadership of the NDC to completely discard the BVR membership card on Saturday, November 7, 2015 parliamentary showdown, since according to them, it is likely to lead to chaos when deployed for the primaries.
They recounted that during the party’s national delegates’ congress in December 2014 in Kumasi, it was agreed that nine (9) executives should be selected from each polling station to constitute the voters’ list for each constituency.

The MPs, therefore, stressed the need for NEC to refrain from using the BVR membership cards, asserting that that could have serious repercussions on the party’s November 7 primaries.

Today’s attempt to seek clarification on the matter from the party’s Director of Elections, Mr. Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo, was unsuccessful.