Police response to voters’ registration violence very bizarre – Otukonor

Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Mr. Peter Boamah Otukonor has described the manner in which the Ghana Police Service handled electoral violence during the just-ended voters’ registration exercise as unacceptable and bizarre.

He also said the just-ended registration exercise is the most violent in the history of Ghana.

“The response from the police has been very bizarre and that is why we NDC embarked on today’s press conference. It’s been 27 days and the Ghana police has said nothing, Electoral Commission has said nothing and Ghana Immigration Service has said nothing”. Mr. Boamah Otukonor told Ibrahim Kwarteng in an interview on GBC’s radio show “Behind the News” monitored by MyNewsGH.com.

The opposition NDC yesterday held a press conference in the capital Accra to address the issues of electoral violence at the just ended voter registration exercise which according to them major authorities including the president has failed to take a great step to end and condemn.

The NDC in their press conference cited numerous crimes and violence that took place during the exercise.

At least two persons were reported to have been killed during the exercise with several sustaining injuries as a result of violence that took place at various registrations centres.

Minister for Special Initiative Madama Hawa Koomson was also reported to have fired gunshot at registration centre in the Central Region dispersing both registrant and EC officials.

However, in their press statement the NDC revealed that “The Exercise witnessed several incidences of brutalities including gunshot injuries, near fatal attacks on at least 2 sitting Members of Parliament (Hon. Alhaji Bawa of Ejura Sekyere Odumase Constituency and Hon. Alhaji Collins Dauda of Asutifi South Constituency) and physical molestation of innocent citizens in a manner that has never been seen before in Ghana. There were also widespread reports of open display of weapons and open shots of live ammunition by highly placed government officials such as Minister for Special Developments, Mavis Hawa Koomsons and Hon Joe Danquah, NPP Parliamentary Candidate for Banda”. The statement said.

Meanwhile, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) has said the press conference held by the NDC is a strategic plan to divert the fact that they (NDC) are going to lose the 2020 elections.

But Mr. Otukonor in his interview sharply responded saying “The press conference we did today was to focus on the issues that happened in Banda involving the CEO for the middle belt development Authority who is the parliamentary candidate for the NPP for the Banda Constituency and his violent and criminal activities including murder that he actually supervised and instructed people to do”.

He insisted that crime has no political colour hence the law must act on anybody who commits such crime.