Deputy Interior Minister Ebenezer Okletey Terlabi has defended the attempted arrest of the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, insisting that the operation was justified and conducted in accordance with national security protocols.
Speaking on Citi FM’s Eyewitness News on Friday, May 23, Terlabi dismissed suggestions of political motivation, stating that the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) acted within its mandate.
“The National Security will not go to Wontumi’s house without a reason. They went there with a reason. So let us allow the security personnel to do their job, because at the end of the day, what we need in this country is peace,” he said.
Addressing claims by Wontumi that the operation was an attempt to harass or harm him, Terlabi pushed back, describing the NPP chairman’s remarks as a distraction.
“He is just playing the victim. Nobody wants to kill Wontumi, and they did not go there to kill him. They went there to invite him. If you are to go and catch a wild dog, you do not go there without arming yourself,” he added.
Terlabi’s remarks come in the wake of accusations by Chairman Wontumi that the NIB and Ghana Police Service had stormed his residence in a politically motivated effort to intimidate him.
Earlier on Friday, Wontumi spoke on Asempa FM and later addressed his supporters, blaming President John Dramani Mahama’s administration for the action against him.
“Ghanaians, rise! Arise, Ghanaians! All NPP supporters should rise. It is because of you that Mahama is treating me this way,” he declared.
The attempted raid has stirred political tensions, with critics calling it an abuse of state power and others urging patience as investigations unfold. So far, there has been no official statement outlining the precise reasons for the NIB’s presence at Wontumi’s residence.
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