Aide to Former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, has issued a stern warning to the Ghana Police Service and President John Dramani Mahama, demanding urgent action following the violence that marred the Ablekuma North parliamentary rerun.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily on Wednesday, July 16, he expressed deep frustration over the lack of accountability and swift response from authorities six days after the chaos, and vowed to propose the establishment of a “Self-Protection Committee” if no firm steps are taken by Saturday, July 12.
“It has been six days. If nothing is done, the only thing that will be left for the NPP to do is to set up the Self-Protection Committee on Saturday, and I am going to insist,” he said.
He further explained that the proposal will be officially made during the party’s conference scheduled for Saturday, July 12, which will focus on reforms.
“Saturday is a conference for reforms. I will raise my hand and recommend that while we have a legal and elections committee, we need a Self-Protection Committee. Because if the NPP doesn’t do that, I will not go out there to any polling station,” he said.
Miracles Aboagye emphasised that the proposed committee would serve as a protective structure for NPP members and other voters, particularly during elections in volatile areas where police presence has proven inadequate.
“The nature of this committee will be that when we find ourselves in a chaotic scene, I should have like 10 or 20 people from the NPP standing in to protect me because the police cannot do it for me. Between now and Saturday, if the Ghana Police and the President do not act, I will recommend a Self-Protection Committee whose responsibility is to ensure that NPP functionaries and other citizens who go to vote will have protection,” he stated.
The call comes in the wake of violent scenes at St. Peter’s polling centre during the Ablekuma North rerun on Friday, July 11, where a group of unidentified macho men stormed the station, disrupted voting, and physically assaulted several individuals.
Channel One News’s Jude Duncan reported that former Fisheries Minister Mavis Hawa Koomson was among those assaulted by the attackers, who arrived in a coordinated fashion and caused widespread panic among voters and officials.
Meanwhile, the Minister for the Interior, Mubarak Muntaka, has assured the public that all individuals involved, regardless of political affiliation, will be brought to justice.
