'No one will be spared': Muntaka orders IGP to act on Ablekuma North election rerun violence
The Minister for the Interior, Mr Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, says the government will not protect any political group engaged in vigilantism and has directed the Inspector General of Police to take immediate action against those involved in last week’s violence at Ablekuma North.
Mr Muntaka was addressing journalists on Monday, 14th July 2025, at the first edition of the Government Accountability Series to update the public on the work of individual ministries.
He said the violent incidents that occurred during the Ablekuma North parliamentary by-election, particularly at Abeka Obom, had been brought to the attention of the Ghana Police Service, with video evidence submitted to aid investigations.
“We’ve instructed the IGP to act swiftly and bring the perpetrators to book,” Mr Muntaka said. “We are not going to condone whether people are within our party or outside our party, anyone going around doing anything unlawful or forming groups.”
The violence occurred on Friday, July 11, when masked men believed to be party thugs disrupted voting at polling centres in the constituency.
At the St Peter’s centre, New Patriotic Party parliamentary candidate Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie and former Member of Parliament and Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, Ms Mavis Hawa Koomson, were assaulted by unidentified men who arrived on motorbikes and in a pickup vehicle.
Several journalists covering the election were also attacked. Salomey Martey of JoyNews was slapped and shoved, while Kwabena Agyekum Banahene of GHOne TV was slapped by a uniformed police officer inside one of the polling stations. Vida Wiafe of ATV was reportedly pepper-sprayed.
The Ghana Journalists Association and the Media Foundation for West Africa have condemned the attacks and demanded justice for the affected journalists.
The Coalition of Domestic Election Observers (CODEO) criticised the police for failing to intervene while the assaults were taking place, despite their visible presence at the polling centres.
The Minority in Parliament echoed these concerns and called for a thorough investigation into what it described as police inaction. The National Peace Council also issued a statement urging restraint and calling on political leaders to discourage violent conduct.
Mr Muntaka reminded the public of the Vigilantism and Related Offences Act, 2019 (Act 999), which prohibits the formation and operation of vigilante groups.
He warned that no individual or group, regardless of political affiliation, would be spared if found to be involved in such acts.
He urged the public to help maintain peace and security, noting that preserving public order is a shared responsibility.
The by-election was held to fill a parliamentary seat that had remained vacant since the December 2024 general election.
Ewurabena Aubynn of the National Democratic Congress was declared the winner after securing 34,090 votes, narrowly defeating her closest rival by 209 votes.
Mr Muntaka said the Ministry of the Interior would continue to support law enforcement agencies in preventing politically motivated violence and upholding the rule of law.
