Pressure is mounting on the Ghana Police Service in Winneba to prosecute one Adams, an activist of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) who assaulted a Radio Gold journalist and another reporter of a Winneba-based NYCE FM during the 2023 district assembly elections.
The two journalists, Emmanuel Coffie and Abena Serwa respectively were assaulted after they were seen filming a display of cash at a polling station during the district assembly elections.
Adams reportedly pulled out a knife and threatened to kill the journalists over their refusal to hand over their mobile phones.
Adams, a known NPP activist in Winneba, later seized the journalist’s two cellular phones, a handbag containing an undisclosed amount of money, medications, and other personal belongings.
According to the report, the journalists were at the University of Education, Winneba central campus (UEW 1 NAM) polling station as part of their coverage of the just ended 2023 District Assembly elections.
Recounting the incident, Radio Gold Reporter Coffie Emmanuel said on the day in question, they were at the polling station when the driver of a Toyota Corolla vehicle drove in and began splashing bundles of cash on the floor at the polling station.
This attracted the attention of the voters who abandoned the voting process and started to scramble for money to get their share of the displayed money.
On seeing this shocking sight, Coffie Emmanuel said he and his colleague from NYCE FM started to film.
According to the Radio Gold Reporter, a few minutes after the driver of the Toyota Corolla vehicle drove off, two well-built macho men stormed the same polling station approached the journalists, and demanded that the journalists hand over their mobile phones for them to delete the recorded videos of the money spraying incident.
This he said resulted in a scuffle between him, Coffie Emmanel and one of the macho men identified as Adams.
In response to the refusal of the two journalists to obey his command, Adams pounced on them and twisted their arms in an attempt to seize their mobile phones.
In the ensuing struggle, Adams pulled out a sharp knife and said to the journalists, “I can kill you here and nothing will happen, nobody will do me anything”.
The journalists upon sensing danger, quickly handed over the phones and a handbag containing money, medications, and other belongings to Adams.
The journalists later reported the case to the Winneba divisional police command.
Two months on, the Police in Winneba are yet to take any concrete steps to prosecute the culprit who walks freely posing a danger to the two journalists.
The latest to add his voice to calls for Adams to be prosecuted is the NDC parliamentary Candidate for Winneba, Dr. James Kofi Annan who wonders why the Police appear lackadaisical to pursue the case. He described the case as armed robbery and a threat to commit murder.
Speaking in a recent media interview, Dr. James Kofi Annan said “Abena Serwaa and Emmanuel Coffie reporters of NYCE FM and Radio Gold respectively were reportedly attacked with a sharp knife and threatened, their valuables including money were taken away from them and this person who did that is reported to be one Adams who is a known NPP activist, in the process of attacking the two journalists, he boasted that he can kill them and nothing will happen to him. True to his words, nothing has happened to him, this is a case of armed robbery as well as a case of threatened to murder a person’’.
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