A Member of Council of Elders of the Convention People's Party, has called for the suspension of Hon. Freddy Blay, incumbent Member of Parliament for Ellembelle from the party until issues with the legislator were finally resolved. Mr. Kwabena Baffour Senkyire, a former Minister under the regime of the late Dr. Kwame Nkrumah told The Chronicle in an interview that though he does not want to delve into the nitty-gritty of the legal matters that are before the law courts, he thinks that Hon. Blay’s action merits suspension. According to him, Blay’s overt and covert actions, coupled with the fact that the First Deputy Speaker failed to meet with the Central Committee of the party to hear what they had to say, amounted to a flagrant violation and total disrespect for the party. “I subscribe to the decision that Mr. Blay should be suspended on condition that the Disciplinary Committee invites him to explain and respond as to why he should not be dismissed or disciplined by the party, but he failed to show up.” Recalling statements attributed to Mr. Blay’s endorsement of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the flag bearer of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), and his statement that the CPP cannot win the upcoming general elections, he argued that it amounted to gross disloyalty to the leadership of the party. Mr. Senkyire, a senior lawyer and an elder statesman, stressed that Mr. Blay had actually shown great disrespect to the leadership of the party and contended that he should be suspended pending further investigations. He also noted that if Hon. Blay’s actions and statements were found to be true, he should be summarily dismissed from the party.” The CPP council member also expressed concern that Mr. Blay had again failed to exhaust the grievance procedures laid down by the party, before seeking for redress before the law courts, and indicated that it would have been proper for Blay to withdraw his case from the courts for an amicable settlement. The CPP elder, who predicted a win for the party under the leadership of Dr. Paa Kwesi Ndoum, said that there is a current wind of change sweeping through the country. He affirmed that the party has actually put in place structures and have elected qualified parliamentary candidates across the country. He was enthused that the CPP has seen total unity now as compared to the previous years, and said the party is poised to cause an upset, adding that in the name of unity and reconciliation, Mr. Blay could be talked to, so as to refrain from his actions. To him, “We are on course. We have a very strong committed advocate in the person of Dr. Ndoum, who is doing everything possible to re-organize the party and I can tell you that we are on the ground.’ On why the CPP should be voted for in 2008 general elections, Mr. Senkyere accused both the NPP and NDC of not doing enough to cushion the living standard of Ghanaians, except to embark upon selling of the state assets. According to him, both NPP and NDC were not able to create jobs for the masses and the youth in the country, and said the CPP is a party noted for job creation. He stressed that with Dr. Ndoum in the driving seat of the CPP, the party would create more jobs for the nation. “In my opinion, the CPP is coming to power to revive all the collapsed or neglected industries. The CPP would make education its priority and engage in agro based industries.’ Mr. Senkyire maintained that though the CPP targeted 100 parliamentarians, the realistic figure on the ground was that the CPP would pluck 77 seats. He gave a detailed account of the various areas that the party is poised to win and pre-empted the remaining 23 seats to go in their favour upon divine intervention. Source: The Chronicle