The four constituency executives of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Effutu, in the Central Region, who were picked up by the Police and sent to the Winneba District Police Command, have been denied bail, their lawyer, Mohammed Kofi Twumasi Naya, has said.
According to him, the police officers state that the denial of bail was because of an order from the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare.
The constituency executives were accosted by the Police after they accompanied the nine suspects who were arrested on Tuesday during a demonstration to the court.
Mr. Naya, in an interview with Citi News, said, “What happened on Wednesday was that about nine persons were arrested for taking part in a lawful demonstration, which was embarked upon by some residents of the Effutu Constituency. These people were picked up by the police on Tuesday. So on Wednesday, they were arraigned before court, and I appeared for them, and the court admitted them to bail. Just as the court admitted these nine persons to bail, the police, there and then, arrested four of the NDC constituency executives. And since then, they have been in police custody, unable to secure bail for them as I speak to you.”
“When I asked the police officers why the arrest, they said that it was an order from the IGP. Even though we have done all the paperwork to secure police enquiry bail for them, it appears that there is an order from somewhere asking them to be detained. If the police had any issue, they had every right to go to court per law to seek an injunction, but they rather protected the protestors.”
The lawyer stressed that there was no evidence that the constituency executives had done wrong, expressing his belief that it was highly political and intended to show the executives where power lay.
“But as for the constituency executives, there is no evidence whatsoever to say that they threw stones as the police are alleging. So for me, it is highly political. It is a matter of showing them where power lies; that is how come the constituency chairman, constituency youth organizer, constituency women organizer, and constituency treasurer have been arrested,” he said.
