Former Vice President and New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential candidate in the 2024 general election, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, on Friday condemned the violent incidents reported during the ongoing parliamentary rerun in Ablekuma North.
Dr. Bawumia observed that the latest development is a betrayal of the democratic principles the National Democratic Congress (NDC) pledged to uphold when they won power in the 2024 elections.
He condemned how supporters belonging to the NPP were being attacked while the security agencies looked on unconcerned.
The former Vice President told local media that the attacks were “very disturbing.”
“This is not the democracy that we want to see in Ghana. Our supporters are being attacked by thugs in the presence of the police, who have been unable to protect them,” said Dr. Bawumia.
The country’s Electoral Commission (EC) ordered the rerun in 19 out of 62 polling stations following a long legal tussle over the December 7, 2024, parliamentary election results in the Ablekuma North constituency.
Despite assurances from the Police Service that security had been beefed up in the area, there were widespread reports of intimidation, clashes, and arrests of individuals in suspicious uniforms.
The electoral rerun was violently disrupted when a group of unidentified “macho men” stormed the premises in coordinated fashion, arriving in a pickup truck accompanied by multiple motorbikes, forcing panic among voters, electoral personnel and security forces.
Eye‐witnesses report that the assailants overpowered the security detail and launched an assault on several political figures, including former MP and ex‐Fisheries Minister Mavis Hawa Koomson.
Disturbing video footage shows her being forced to the ground and reportedly stomped in the chest and groin area before officers intervened.
Other victims included NPP parliamentary candidate Nana Akua Afriyie and a female party agent, both reportedly injured amid the turmoil.
A journalist with GHOne TV was slapped by a police officer during the polls. Enditem
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