NDC thugs invade Ussher Polyclinic

Members of the Unity Youth of Agbogbloshie stood their grounds and prevented the thugs from advancing their cause.

A ceremony to commission a female ward and unveil a plaque in honour of a former Member of Parliament (MP), the late Samuel Ayikwei Mankattah, at the Usher Polyclinic, was nearly marred by violence, when some thugs emerged to disrupt the ceremony.

The peaceful atmosphere with which the event was being organised was brought to a standstill by the thugs, who sources say were from Bukom and Cow Lane, suburbs of Accra, and were prevented from advancing their cause by the Unity Youth of Agbogbloshie, a National Democratic Congress (NDC) youth wing, whose members were invited to the ceremony by the MP of the area, Jonathan Tackie-Komme.

It all started around 11:50 a.m., when the Deputy Minister of Health, Rojo Mettle Nunoo, was delivering his keynote address. A young man, affectionately called Sadam by his peers and said to be the ringleader of the thugs, stormed the premises of the forecourt of the hospital (venue of the event) with his Skoda Octavia saloon car with registration number GR 9596 S, and started shouting “we don’t want the MP.”

His action drew the attention of the teeming crowd, including the Deputy Health Minister, who was on the podium.

“Sadam, what do you want from here?” Mr. Mettle-Nunoo queried before going ahead to conclude his message.

Whilst continuing his address, the aforementioned youth wing of the NDC had secured the entrance of the premises to prevent Sadam’s men from entering. This resulted in heated arguments between the two factions, with the Unity Youth of Agbogbloshie resisting pressure from the thugs.

In the ensuing melee, the youth wing threatened to smash and tow the vehicle of Sadam if he continued to perpetrate violence at the event.

“We are NDC people, and we will not allow somebody to come and disorganise this peaceful event meant to address the health needs of the people Odododiodio. If President Mills hears this, he will not be happy, and that is why we’ve stood to our grounds,” explained one of the members of the Unity Youth of Agbogbloshie, who did not disclose his identity.

Tension, however, began to build up when the youth wing started importing stones to the forecourt of the hospital with the sole aim of engaging the thugs if they dared return to complete their unfinished task.

Calm, however, returned to the hospital, when the James Town District Police Command emerged out of the blue at about 12:35 p.m. to maintain order.

They were met on their arrival by Mr. Mettle-Nunoo, together with some health officials of the hospital.

In attendance at the event were Nii Lante Vanderpuye, a presidential staffer at the seat of government, Fritz Baffour, MP for Ablekuma South, Jonathan Tackie-Komme, the clergy, some health personnel and NDC party functionaries in the constituency.