Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has assured Parliament that the Ghana Police Service is actively investigating the disturbances that disrupted during the Ashanti Regional Council of State election on February 11, 2025.
Answering questions on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday, the Minister disclosed that the election, which commenced at 8:00 AM at the Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council premises in Kumasi, proceeded smoothly until 11:30 AM, when sorting of ballots began.
However, just as the counting was about to start, a group of individuals standing by run over security barricades, vandalized ballots, and destroyed other election materials, forcing the process to halt.
According to Mr. Mohammed-Mubarak, the Ghana Police Service has obtained footage of the incident to aid in identifying the perpetrators. The security agencies, he noted, are committed to ensuring that those responsible are arrested and prosecuted.
To prevent a recurrence, the police administration implemented key strategic changes before the rescheduled election on February 17, 2025. These included:
Restructuring the police command: The original Ashanti Regional Police Commander was reassigned, and other key changes were made within the command structure.
Enhanced security measures: Strict election security protocols were put in place to allow only Electoral Commission-accredited personnel into the middle and inner perimeters of the election venue.
The Minister emphasized that the police administration had taken lessons from the February 11 incident and had put in place stringent measures to safeguard future elections.
