Scores of opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) members in Techiman South sustained varying degrees of injury when some party thugs, believed to be operating in the constituency, on two occasions within a week clashed with some party executives and other members at two locations.
Most of the injured, whose conditions were critical, now find themselves at the Techiman Holy Family Hospital.
Some constituency and ward executives who were scheduled to address a press conference on Sunday July 24, 2022 at Akina Hotel about the party’s on-going internal elections had to lock horns with the party’s thugs, who are believed to be usually used to attack people during general elections.
As if that was not enough, the NDC thugs resurfaced again on last Thursday July 28, 2022 at the party’s constituency office, and attacked anyone they met at the office with machetes and other offensive weapons.
In the process, about ten executives and party faithful, including the constituency secretary, Sulemana Twi Brempong; youth organizer, Halidu Sulemana, and the communications officer, Alhaji Sulemana Issah, were mercilessly beaten to pulp by their own party people and had to be rushed to the hospital.
Our correspondent gathered that there had been a series of similar attacks within the NDC in the Techiman South, resulting in heightening of tension and animosity among party faithful in the area.
Free-for-all fight
“Just as we were about to start the press conference, some thugs welding all manner of offensive weapons stormed the party office in one of the party’s official pick-up vehicles in the possession of the suspended constituency chairman, Alhaji Nuhu Fawa, and started attacking us without any provocation,” Kwadwo Agyei, the NDC Branch Chairman for Central Dwomo, told the media in an interview.
According to him, the constituency chairman had been suspended for six months by the party’s Regional Disciplinary Committee, but he is refusing to step aside, and still carries himself as such. He accused the suspended chairman of being behind the attacks visited on the constituency executives.
“When the thugs, who numbered over 30, jumped on us at the venue, it degenerated into a free-for-all fight. They slapped one of my boys who also retaliated, and so it became an open fight among us and as a result the planned meeting could not come on.”
A video being circulated on social media about the incident captures parts of the melee as someone is seen hitting people with a bench.
Reports say it took the timely intervention of the Military Patrol Team to rescue the executives from being lynched by the party thugs.
NDC Communicators in the constituency are said to have suspended their services following this incident, and have subsequently boycotted all radio discussion programmes to register their displeasure about happenings in the party.
