President Akufo-Addo through the Ministry of Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development (MLGDRD), has suspended from office Mr Abdul-Mumin Issah, Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE) of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA), over the alleged misconduct of assaulting a police officer who confronted him for dangerous driving.
The suspension is to take immediate effect and it is to allow an inquiry into his encounter with a police officer which happened on February 3, 2022.
A press statement issued and signed by the Minister for the sector, Mr Daniel K Botwe and copied to the iGOGHANA reads, “On the instructions of the President, the Metropolitan Chief Executive for Sekondi-Takoradi Assembly, Mr Abdul Mumin Issah has been suspended from office with immediate effect pending an inquiry into his encounter with the police on February 3, 2022.”
It said without prejudice to the matter now before Court, the Government takes a very dim view of the comments made by the MCE during his exchanges with the police.
According to the statement, the comments made by the Mayor run contrary to the Government’s belief and work to ensure that our security agencies and indeed public agencies were resourced, empowered and accorded the respect to deliver on their mandates.
Meanwhile, in the interim, the Western Regional Minister, Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah has been assigned additional supervisory authority over the Assembly.
The Metropolitan Chief Executive was in Court this morning for the same offence and was granted a GH¢100,000 bail with three (3) sureties after being charged for allegedly assaulting a police officer who confronted him for dangerous driving.
The MCE was charged on three (3) counts of Assault of a public officer, Offensive conduct conducive to breaches of the peace, and disturbing the peace in a public place contrary to Sections 205, 207, and 298 respectively, of the Criminal and Other Offences Act of 1960, Act 29.
He was also charged for dangerous driving contrary to Section 1 of Act 683 of 2004 as amended by Act 761 of 2008.
The MCE was said to have challenged the orders of the police inspector while conducting his duty, raining insults on him and threatening to make sure that the said police officer was transferred to Enchi, which is in the Western North Region and far from Takoradi.
The incident happened when the police were doing a routine snap-check at 8:30 pm around the Kwesimintsim Cemetery when the Mayor was said to be in his white Toyota Land Cruiser vehicle with registration number GE 5615-20 decided to bypass the traffic of cars waiting to go through the snap-checks.
Below is a copy of the press statement:
