In Ghana, a leading member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Bede Ziedeng, has resigned. The party has recently faced massive resignations, which some think have weakened it. In a letter to the NDC, Ziedeng said his decision was based on events before, during, and after the party’s congress, held in Koforidua in Eastern Ghana. The general secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, spoke with Voice of America English to Africa reporter Peter Clottey about Mr. Ziedeng’s resignation.
“We consider the writing of that letter totally unnecessary at this stage because he is no longer considered a member of the party. For…he engaged in a conduct that excludes him as a member of the party. So we are surprised that he still considers himself a member of the party and therefore he needed to resign. As far as we are concerned he has left the party four, five months ago, we have accounted for his absence and we are moving forward. But as far as we are concerned since he started mobilizing for a new party we considered him as a non-member of the NDC so his letter at this stage has totally no effect on the party at all.”
Asiedu-Nketia explained that the party’s regulations forbid any member of the party from associating with another party. ”It is a standing regulation in our party that the moment you begin canvassing for membership for another party, you are considered no longer as a member of the party. He has used that law against people who had contested for positions on different party tickets. And we didn’t need to write to him or anything. That has been the way we operated the rule. You can only resign when you are a member of the party, but once you are automatically out of the party you don’t need to resign.”
He said party officials have been going to various constituencies in the nation to educate party members on the recent resignations of higher-level representatives.
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