Leading member of the ruling New Patriotic Party, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, has revealed how then-President John Dramani Mahama received a first-hand report of how he was beaten by police officers during a protest in 2015.
In a post to mark the 9th year after his infamous assault by the police during a protest held by Let My Vote Count Alliance on September 20, 2015, Gabby said he received a report that a senior officer happily reported the assault on him to Mr. Mahama.
“Exactly 9 years ago to the day the NDC held their demonstration this week calling for an audit of Ghana’s electoral roll, some Ghanaians, predominantly NPP activists, marched the streets of Accra peacefully to present a similar petition to the Electoral Commission. The EC HQ was declared a security zone and unarmed protestors were beaten mercilessly by the Police. No police person was attacked by a protestor. In fact, it took some police officers to fight off those police officers sent out deliberately to ‘teach us a lesson’. I found out later that a security head went to President Mahama to announce triumphantly that I had been well walloped,” he wrote on X.
Despite the alleged excitement of the officer in relaying the report, Gabby stated that President Mahama did not take kindly to the report of his assault.
“To his credit, I was told the President was not amused. Sadly, Justice lost his eye and eventually his life,” he said.
His statement comes on the back of a recent protest by the opposition National Democratic Congress to impress on the Electoral Commission for an audit of the voter register.
Comparing the NDC’s demonstration to that of the LMVCA, Gabby indicated that, unlike the #EnoughIsEnough protest, they were not allowed to submit their petition to the EC.
“Sadly, Justice lost his eye and eventually his life. But, strategically our protest demanding a clean voter register took place almost 15 months before the next general elections, giving the protestors a realistic chance for success.
“And, the petition that could not be submitted that day contained verifiable evidence and inductions to support the campaign. Is it the same case today? I have not been following closely, but I thought this reminder could be helpful,” his post concluded.
Read the full post below:
Exactly 9 years ago to the day the NDC held their demonstration this week calling for an audit of Ghana’s electoral roll, some Ghanaians, predominantly NPP activists, marched the streets of Accra peacefully to present a similar petition to the Electoral Commission. The EC HQ was… pic.twitter.com/21FbEmgb4v
— Gabby Otchere-Darko (@GabbyDarko) September 20, 2024
GA
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