I’m Not a Violent Person – Hawa Koomson Responds to Ablekuma North Rerun Chaos

Former Member of Parliament for Awutu Senya East and ex-Fisheries Minister, Mavis Hawa Koomson, has denied any involvement in the violent scenes that erupted during the parliamentary rerun election in the Ablekuma North constituency.

In an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen show, Hawa Koomson firmly rejected allegations linking her to the disturbances, insisting that she is not a violent individual and has no interest in harming others.

“I have children and brothers. Why would I want to harm someone’s child? I won’t allow anyone to kill, and I certainly won’t do it myself,” she said.

Her comments come after chaos broke out last Friday at St. Peter’s Methodist Church polling station — one of 19 centres where the rerun was held due to disputed results from the December 2024 general elections. Reports indicated that unidentified individuals overpowered police officers stationed at the polling centre.

Viral videos from the incident showed Hawa Koomson using pepper spray as a crowd moved toward her. Addressing this, she explained that she acted in self-defense.

“I was surprised. I went there peacefully, but they attacked me. I had to defend myself,” she said.

Koomson also addressed lingering accusations from the 2020 elections, where she was alleged to have fired a gun in Kasoa.

“In 2020, nobody was killed in my constituency. It was the NDC that attacked me, and I fired a warning shot in self-defence,” she clarified.

Responding to further claims of hostility toward the NDC parliamentary candidate during the recent campaign period, she noted, “I never met with the NDC contender during the entire campaign period. I didn’t go near her or her events. So I was surprised to hear that I was being blamed for causing confusion.”

Despite the controversy surrounding the July 11 rerun, Hawa Koomson insists she was unfairly targeted and that her only intention was to protect herself.

“I didn’t go there to fight. I was attacked, and I only tried to protect myself,” she concluded.