Communication Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Upper East Region, Abdallah Jonathan Salifu has justified the assault of students at the Christian Service University.
The students were allegedly beaten by men believed to be part of the former president, John Dramani Mahama’s security details during the university’s 50th anniversary celebration, at which Mr. Mahama was a special guest of honour.
They were said to have chanted “Mahama will lose” while the former president was delivering a speech, resulting in the attack on them.
In videos and pictures that are circulating on social media, one of the victims is seen with his head, face and hand bandaged.
But speaking in an interview on Breakfast Today on Dreamz FM today, Abdallah Jonathan said the victims should have been “beaten more”.
He argued that their actions smacked of disregard to the person of Mr. Mahama and caused nuisance at the event thus, the assault on them will deter them from repeating such misconduct.
“If you come there and you want to disrupt the program, your own colleagues will discipline. Some of us are of the view that he should have been beaten more if he was actually beaten. Because you can’t do that to your own father in his face, in his presence. He’s talking and you’re among the crowd shouting as if you are a madman”.
He, however, denied that the alleged perpetrators were part of the former president’s security detail.
“No security man of president Mahama beat anybody and if you look at the statement that was released by Stan Dogbe, no security man of president Mahama did touch anybody” .
Meanwhile, the Youth Wing of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) is demanding an apology from the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) over the incident.
In a statement signed by the National Youth Organizer of NPP, Salam Mustapha, the party accused the former president of watching on while his security details unleashed terror on the students.
They are, therefore, holding him responsible for the attack and calling on him to apologize as well as hand over the said security personnel to the police to face the full rigorous of the law.
