Politics of Tuesday, 21 July 2020

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

Hawa Koomson’s actions are criminal - Sammy Gyamfi

NDC's National Communication Officer, Sammy Gyamfi NDC's National Communication Officer, Sammy Gyamfi

The National Communication Officer of the opposition NDC, Sammy Gyamfi, has described the actions of incumbent Member of Parliament, Mavis Hawa Koomson, as criminal.

On Monday the Steps to Christ polling station at Kasoa was closed down by the officials of the Electoral Commission after some gun-wielding men reportedly stormed the premises firing shots. They reportedly burnt motorcycles which disrupted the work of the EC.

The Awutu Senya MP later confirmed that she was responsible for the shooting at her constituency and not her bodyguards who were with her.

Reacting to the case, Sammy Gyamfi, tagged the actions of the incumbent MP as criminal because she disrupted the peace of Ghanaians which under law is a crime.

“Section 198 of the criminal offences of Ghana 1960 act 29 section 189, 199, 200 downwards speaks about crimes against the peace of Ghana, rioting is a crime. What the woman has done is criminal, reprehensible, shameful, broth on our democracy and it cannot be defended,” Sammy Gyamfi told TV3 in an interview.

According to him there was no need to carry a gun to the polling station because “there was noeminent danger, no threat to her life, no act of violence at the polling station before she got there to elicit the claim of self-defense.”

Contrary to the assertions that the gun-shots were warning shots, Sammy Gyamfi claimed that Hawa Koomson deliberately fired the shots at her own constituents.

“These were not even warning shot, these were targeted shots. She targeted shots at her own constituents. If you look at the manner in which the shots were fired, they were aimed at people,” the NDC’s Communication Officer said.

He added “When she missed her target, she together with her gun-wielding thugs invaded the polling centre, burnt the motorcycles of innocent registrants and some party agents of the NDC.”

The NDC communicator added claims by the NPP that the opposition party bused people to the polling station were allegations without evidence.

“Were there buses at the centre? We are not talking about allegations because your reporters have been there, was there a bus at the centre? Has the woman been able to show us evidence of people who have been bused there and were not eligible to be registered there? For a minister of state, a lawmaker to take the law into her own hands in that gangstar-rambo style, destroying property and distracting the exercise for the whole day that is criminal.”

Sammy Gyamfi also confirmed his agreement with claims that the Minister for Special Development Initiatives must be sacked.