Majority Leader and Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga, has attributed the recent violence at the Ablekuma North parliamentary rerun to what he described as a contradictory stance by the New Patriotic Party .
Speaking on the floor of Parliament, Mr. Ayariga argued that the NPP’s official announcement to boycott the July 11 rerun misled security agencies into lowering their guard, which ultimately resulted in chaos and violence on election day.
“Do you know the implication for announcing you will not participate in an election. What you do is that you put the security agencies to sleep” he said
The Electoral Commission conducted the rerun in 19 polling stations following a dispute over the December 2024 parliamentary results in the constituency. While the NPP publicly rejected the EC’s directive, citing that their candidate had already won, their parliamentary candidate Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie still contested in the rerun. High-ranking party officials were also visibly present on the ground, many of whom reportedly became victims of the unrest.
Mr. Ayariga questioned the NPP’s true intent, suggesting the party’s last-minute participation was a “deliberate ploy” to destabilize the process
“Is it a deliberate ploy by the NPP to create chaos and mayhem in the election only to go and participate. Then when there is a security situation you turn around to say it is state sponsored.” e stated
The pockets of violence recorded at some polling stations has sparked renewed concerns over election security, as key NPP officials and journalists were assualted. However, government has pledged to treat the cases as criminal and also establish an Independent Police Complaints Commission, a recommendation from the Emile Short Commission following the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence.