Call Sammy Gyamfi to order-NPP Chairman

New Patriotic Party National Chairman, Freddie Blay, is urging leaders of the opposition National Democratic Congress to call their party National Communications Officer to order.

The former First Deputy Speaker of Parliament believes Sammy Gyamfi’s clarion call on NDC supporters to defend themselves, when they are threatened by alleged NPP thugs, is unsavoury.

During a recent press conference of the country’s largest opposition party, it listed a litany of allegations of attacks on its party agents at the ongoing registration centres as well as party sympathisers attacked by persons suspected to be NPP thugs.

Mr Gyamfi, therefore, urged NDC supporters to defend themselves since the security services had in those instances failed to take action against the perpetrators of the violence.

But reacting to the statement, Mr Blay insists it is reckless and can trigger unnecessary tension ahead of the December 7 polls.

He maintains that the ideal thing the NDC supporters should do when they feel intimidated should be to report to the police.

“In Atiwa, for example, a car was driven on the leg of an individual belonging to our party. In a few times, such things have taken place, regrettably so, at that time, we reported it to the police.

In Ghana, opposition parties have always accused the security services of being bias as reported cases of attacks and assaults go uninvestigated and unpunished.

Mr Gyamfi during the Wednesday press conference also accused the police of looking on while the alleged NPP hooligans attack NDC supporters, and warned that the NDC would deal with members of the security services who allow themselves to used.

But the NPP Chairman insists the statement is unwarranted.

“The NDC should be careful and help Sammy Gyamfi because he has even gone to the extent of threatening to sack security officers. This is not the time to do this. I will advise the leadership of the NDC to talk to the young man and also caution their men, we will do same too,” he said.

Hawa Koomson incident

Meanwhile,  Mr Freddie Blay, say calls for the sacking of the Minister of Special Development Initiatives Minister, Mavis Hawa Koomson, are ”pointless” and “absolutely needless”.

According to Mr Blay, Mrs Koomson’s actions were in self-defence to unwarranted attacks on her and her team by masked motorists invited by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) to disrupt the EC registration process in her constituency.

In a statement issued on Friday, July 24,  by the party, the National Chairman said “it is most worrying to see different groups expected to be more objective in their submissions, rather fall for the propaganda and misrepresentation of the opposition NDC in relations to the matter,”  Freddy Blay said in a statement.

“The CSOs, journalists and the army of security experts commenting on this issue must resist the temptation of emotional outbursts that are likely to fuel the violent desires of the opposition NDC, creating more indiscipline among their followers during the EC registration process and subsequently, the general elections,” he added.

Mr Blay vouched for the Cabinet Minister saying, Mrs. Hawa Koomson is one of the calmest female representatives of the NPP in Parliament and there is no evidence of any sort that can suggest her to be a violent individual, even in the face of extreme provocation.

The Awutu Senya East MP had admitted firing gunshots at a voter registration centre in the Central Region.

“It was my gun. I fired my own warning shot,” the cabinet minister told Adom News in an interview monitored by theghanareport.com.

She said she witnessed intimidating scenes at the polling station, with some motorbikes making furious turns around the centre. She believes it was men recruited by her opponents to cause fear.

“I realized that my peoples’ lives were in danger. I wanted to scare them,” the 54-year-old former teacher explained why she fired her gun, which she said was licensed.

Since the incident which resulted in a temporary closure of the registration centre station at Kasoa in the Awutu Senya East Constituency in the Central Region, there have been calls from security experts, including Prof Kwesi Aning and the National Peace Council to have Ms Koomson either fired or compelled to resign.

Read also: Police Retrieve Hawa Koomson’s Gun