Sammy Gyamfi, the National Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), has condemned the Ghana Police Service for allegedly detaining the party’s parliamentary candidate for the Awutu Senya East Constituency.
According to Mr. Gyamfi, the police have not provided any reason for the arrest and subsequent detention of Madam Phyllis Naa Koryoo Okunor.
In a social media post, he criticized the development as an attempt to silence the NDC.
Giving more details, Sammy Gyamfi explained that, “Her offense is simply that a weapon (gun) was found in her car. The said weapon is registered in her name. All the necessary registration documents have been submitted to the Police.
“Unlike, Hawa Koomson who in 2020 actually fired a gun at a registration center, Naa Koryoo has not fired any gun or weapon. Yet, the …Police service is hellbent on detaining her.”
On Sunday, June 2, 2024, the Ghana Police Service announced that three individuals were arrested at Ofaakor for possessing a firearm without lawful authority.
The suspects, including Ms. Phillis Naa Koryoo Okunor, Mustapha Mohammed, and Abdul Aziz Musah, were apprehended while traveling in a Honda CRV with registration number GX-2044-19 near the Electoral Commission Office at Ofaakor.
During the arrest, a pump-action gun with four rounds of ammunition was seized from the vehicle.
In an interview on Wednesday, June 5, Ms. Okunor clarified that she was invited by the police rather than formally arrested.
She stressed that the firearm found in her car was legally licensed and explained that she obtained it for self-protection against the incumbent NPP MP and Minister for Fisheries, Hawa Koomson.
Ms. Okunor claimed that the police had failed to protect her during previous altercations, where the MP allegedly attacked her and even fired gunshots.
“I have never been arrested. Yes, I was invited to the police station. I was not arrested. I was there because I had to go there.
“My driver was arrested, and my security guard was arrested because a licensed gun was found in my car…It was far away from the registration centre,” she said.
Prior to the arrest related to firearm possession, a clash between NDC and NPP supporters occurred at the EC’s office in Ofaakor during the ongoing votes transfer exercise.
This altercation resulted in the stabbing of Ato Koomson, son of the incumbent MP and Minister for Fisheries, Hawa Koomson, who was subsequently hospitalized. The suspect involved in the stabbing has also been arrested and detained.
It remains unclear whether the subsequent arrest of the NDC Parliamentary Candidate is connected to the stabbing incident or solely pertains to the firearm possession charge.