Dr. Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe, a founding member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has described the behaviour of the police during the three-day #OccupyJulorbiHouse protest as shameful.
He said that the peaceful approach of the protest did not warrant the violent response from the police and intimated that the government must take absolute blame for the arrests that were made on the day of the protest.
Organizers of the protest, Democracy Hub, said that they were, among other things, protesting the government’s inability and reluctance to attend to the economic hardship confronting Ghanaians.
Forty-nine of the protesters including a BBC journalist and his cameraman were also arrested.
Dr. Nyaho-Tamakloe said on Face to Face on Citi TV that he is firmly of the belief that the order to handle the protest violently probably came from a higher authority and said that the IGP would have resigned his position if it had happened in other jurisdictions.
“The police behaviour during the demonstration was very shameful. It is shameful they behaved like that in this 21st century. They should not forget that whatever happens now is covered by either a camera or something. These were fellow Ghanaians, and they had not attacked the seat of government, they were just gathered and had not even moved and the police came to attack them. That was totally wrong and the government must take the blame.”
“The behaviour of the police showed one thing clearly to me, it showed that they were clearly directed by some political power, and they were told what to do. If it had been in the USA or Britain, people would have gotten to know what really was behind it and if it had been in a more civilised country, the IGP would have resigned.”