Shortly after the Electoral Commission proclaimed Ewurabena Aubynn the victor of the hotly disputed rerun, Rashid Tanko-Computer, the NDC’s Deputy Director of Elections and IT, denied the allegations in an interview with Hanson Agyemang of Citi News.
“What is wrong with this situation? We have complete faith in state security, and NDC has not sent any macho men anywhere. Based on our performance history, we were elected,” he said.
One of the 19 voting places in the rerun, St. Peter’s Society, was the scene of the disruption when unidentified males broke in, attacked voters, and caused mayhem.
Former Fisheries Minister Mavis Hawa Koomson and NPP parliamentary candidate Nana Akua Afriyie were reportedly among those attacked.
Additional security forces were sent in to stabilize the scene after Jude Duncan, a journalist for Citi News, confirmed the assault on both ladies.
Later, voting was resumed with increased security. Tanko-Computer rejected the idea that the NDC planned the assault and instead tasked the relevant authorities with looking into it and taking appropriate action.
He replied, “That falls within their domain,” urging the police to ascertain the perpetrators’ identities and motivations.
Unresolved concerns from the general elections held on December 7, 2024, which left the seat vacant, prompted the Electoral Commission to arrange the rerun.
The rematch ended the standoff definitively after months of political strain and legal fighting. With 34,090 votes, Ewurabena Aubynn won by a slim margin against Nana Akua Afriyie of the NPP, who received 33,881.
The outcome represents a significant change in Ablekuma North, a seat that the NPP has held virtually continuously since 1996.
The NDC has maintained that it ran a clean campaign and won on the basis of performance rather than violence, despite the controversy surrounding the rerun.
- Now that the result is known, there are increasing demands for a comprehensive inquiry to hold those accountable for the disturbance at the St. Peter’s polling station.
