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Executive Director of the Human Rights and Governance Centre, Martin Kpebu, has opined that the Supreme Court’s quashing of the injunction against the #Fixthecountry demonstration sends a clear message to the Ghana Police Service that no one has the right to deny an individual’s right to protest.
According to him, Ghanaians must commend the Supreme Court for coming to the ordinary citizen’s rescue, “the Supreme Court has done right by us, by finally stating that the police cannot take our rights for granted.
“When it comes to the demonstration, the Supreme Court’s ruling is more than sufficient, it’s more than even the intended demonstration, at least it has put the Police at the wrong side of history that in these matters they shouldn’t rush to Court.
He was contributing to discussions on Joy FM’s Top Story Tuesday, June 8. His comment was in respect of the clash between the #FixTheCountry protestors and some personnel of the Ghana Police Service at the premises of the Accra High Court during which it is alleged that the police manhandled and prevented the protestors from entering the court premises.
Mr Kpebu said he found it mind-boggling that the Police Service chose ‘ambush litigation’ means to prevent the demonstrators from exercising their right to protest.
“This kind of ambush litigation was thrown away 10 years back, yet the Police could not modernise, they still like that ‘Buga buga’ practice,” Mr Kpebu said.
The Police on several occasions tried preventing #Fixthecountry protestors from hiting the streets to exercise their right to demonstrate for change.
They secured a restraining order from a High Court to bar the agitated youth from embarking on a planned protest shortly after the National Security Coordinator, Mr. Albert Kan-Dapaah met convenors of the #FixTheCountry movement to discuss concerns raised during the social media uproar.
The order, granted by Justice Ruby Aryeetey, prevented the group from proceeding with the protest march on the said day “or any other date until the restriction on public gathering is lifted.”
And on the day the protesters headed to the premises of the Accra High Court to hear court ruling, it is alleged that some personnel of the Ghana Police Service deliberately tried preventing them from entering the court premises.
This development turned the otherwise peaceful march chaotic. The presiding judge had to suspend proceedings to allow the lawyers of the agitating youth to intervene and calm them down.
However, in a ruling handed down today, June 8, the Supreme Court set aside the injunction from the High Court and ordered the protester to go ahead with their demonstration.
#FixTheCountry started as an online protest which metamorphosed into a movement – spearheaded largely by the youth, meant to amplify sentiments such as the rising unemployment rate, inefficient health systems, the skyrocketing cost of rent, poor road networks among others, which the youth say are hurting their standard of living.
Mr Kpebu has however advised the protestors to forgo the demonstration exercise indicating that the verdict of the Supreme Court speaks volumes, hence ‘there is no point in the demonstration anymore.’
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