Gun Wielding Police Officers Lock Out Ashanti NASPA Executives…As Elections Are Called off.

Officers and men from the Ashanti Regional Police Command on Monday morning stormed the offices of the Civil and Local Government Service Association of Ghana 🇬🇭 (CLOGSAG) and disrupted the elections of national service persons.

Both spirants and delegates from the National Service Persons Association (NASPA) in the 43 Metropolis, Municipal and District Assemblies had converged to elect regional executives to run the outfit for one year.

Numbering about 15, the gun wielding officers said they had received instructions to stop the elections.

The officers therefore requested that all the delegates including the aspirants who had assembled vacated the room of the meeting as well as the premises of the offices of CLOGSAG.

Organising Secretary:
Goddea Asiedu Abourden, the outgoing Ashanti regional organising secretary said the Police claimed that they had received orders to stop the elections.

The Police, Mr Abourden stated mentioned that they had received information that the elections were being held illegally.

Furthermore, the organising secretary said the Police mentioned that the National Executives in Accra had not sanctioned the gathering.

“Among other claims, the Police said they had received instructions from above to stop the meeting and that the election process was illegal and had not been sanctioned by the National executives of NASPA”, Mr Abourden stated.

Remedial Measures;
However, Mr Abourden said together with the aspirants and delegates they had resolved to call the elections off.

He added that a new date, which is the 5th of June, had been agreed amongst the stakeholders to reconvene for the elections and swearing in ceremonies.

Disappointment:
Speaking to this reporter, some delegates from Asante Akyem North, Bekwai and Odotobri expressed their frustration about the situation.

They claimed they had expended personal resources as well as their time to make themselves available for the elections today.

Some of the delegates revealed that the elections should have been held last Friday but a protest from some members forced organisers to move the date to today.

The reason for the suggested postponement, they noted was to allow aspirants to lobby, campaign and woo delegates from the NASPA administrative areas in Ashanti.