George Opare Addo, the Minister of Youth Empowerment and Development, is facing mounting allegations over the deployment of armed National Security operatives to interfere in student elections.
Eyewitnesses and student leaders claim that heavily armed operatives, some reportedly carrying AK-47 and Scorpion rifles, stormed the Graduate Students’ Association of Ghana (GRASAG) elections at Ensign Global University in Kpong on Wednesday, March 5. The operatives allegedly disrupted voting, intimidated and assaulted students, and blocked access to polling stations.
Reports suggest the operation was coordinated through key figures in the NDC Youth Wing, including its Director of Operations, Bernard Dartey (alias Kawawa), and Warrant Officer Class 1 (WO1) Yakubu both of the National Security Secretariat- Blue Gate.
Bernard Dartey who was recruited into the National Security operative less than a month ago admitted executing the plan on Opare Addo’s instructions. Their alleged mission: to ensure that Jimmy Mawuse Adangbe, won at all costs. Notably, the election featured three presidential candidates, Jimmy Mawuse Adangbe, Baba Suleman, and Favour Aikins.
Additionally, some NDC activists dressed in military uniforms, allegedly under Bernard Dartey’s command, worked alongside these operatives to intimidate students and obstruct the voting process.
Allegations also implicate individuals associated with the youth wing, including Director of Students Affairs Bright Baah Egyir, Richard Class-Peters, Anthony Baah Danquah, and Sharif Mohammed Ayedakew, who were reportedly armed with pistols.
In a shocking escalation, security operatives reportedly fired gunshots to instill fear and enforce compliance.
Video evidences shows that the armed security operatives were standing by the ballot boxes as the students casted their votes. The operatives are also accused of vandalizing election materials and preventing students from entering the premises to cast their votes.
The controversy deepened when several institutions were arbitrarily barred from voting.
Among them were: University of Mines and Technology, Institute of Local Government Studies, University of Health and Allied Sciences and Ensign Global University, the host institution of the elections, which was shockingly excluded from the process.
GRASAG leadership has condemned the intervention as unnecessary and alarming. The unarmed police officers who GRASAG executive formally invited to provide security were sidelined by the armed security operatives. According to the police they neither called for reinforcement not invited the national security operatives.
Two of the vehicles identified at the private university are a white Nissan Hardbody pickup with registration numbers (AP 566-24) and a military pickup (44 GA 33).
Students, who were preparing for breakfast before the elections, were reportedly taken by surprise by the aggressive arrival of heavily armed operatives, creating an atmosphere of fear.
Many have drawn parallels between this incident and the 2019 Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence, where National Security operatives led by DSP Samuel Azugu attacked civilians. At the time, former President John Mahama and civil society groups strongly condemned the attack. Now, students are questioning why such tactics are being deployed under Mahama’s administration.
In January 2025, President John Dramani Mahama directed the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, to launch an investigation into election-related deaths recorded during the 2020 and 2024 elections. The 2020 elections saw eight fatalities from gunfire allegedly discharged by military personnel in the Techiman South constituency of the Bono East Region.
A statement signed by the Executive Secretary to the President, Dr. Callistus Mahama, addressed to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), noted that these incidents had left a lasting mark on the nation’s democratic process.
Amid the outrage, students are demanding an annulment of the election results and a fresh, fair election under neutral security supervision.
Other demands include a full government investigation into the involvement of National Security in the elections, punishment for those responsible for voter suppression and intimidation and a commitment from the government to prevent military-style interventions in student elections.
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