Henry Nana Boakye
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) National Organiser, Henry Nana Boakye, has expressed shock at the conduct of the Ghana Police Service towards Kwame Baffoe, popularly known as Abronye DC, describing it as an “abuse” of Mr. Baffoe’s rights.
He made these assertions outside the Accra Circuit Court after Mr. Baffoe was remanded into custody for another week. He questioned the reasoning behind Abronye’s remand, inquiring whether his offences were treasonous.
“This is very unfortunate, he’s been remanded to police custody again for another one week. In fact, I am surprised that a misdemeanour could attract such high-handedness. The approach is bad, it’s just an abuse of his rights. You saw almost a hundred police men, fully armed to the teeth. Is he a terrorist? Has he committed treason?” he asked.
He cited the incident with National Vice Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Alhaji Sofo Azorka, who was granted bail after allegedly threatening the life of the Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, and other instances where members of the NDC threatening members of the NPP.
“Even when we were in court, we saw a news item where Sofo Azorka, who has actually threatened the minority leader, he was arrested, granted bail the same day, and he’s been directed to appear before the court. In fact, we even have the constituency communications officer for the NDC in Abuakwa North who openly said they are looking for my good self, honourable Annoh Dompre and the minority leader to kill,” he said.
He added that the NPP as a collective has petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Christian Tetteh Yohuno, after these threats were made, but is yet to receive a reply.
“In fact, the New Patriotic Party officially petitioned the IGP, signed by the General Secretary. As we speak, we have not received any official correspondence from the police,” he said.
He added that it looked as though state institutions are being weaponised and being used against the NPP.
The Minority Leader in parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, also raised concerns over the Ghana Police Service’s decision to place Mr. Baffoe in the custody of the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) over a case he described as a mere misdemeanour.
Speaking to journalists at the Accra Circuit Court today, Mr. Afenyo-Markin described the circumstances surrounding his arrest and detention.
“He was invited by the police on Monday, September 8. He honoured the invitation, appeared with his lawyers, and submitted himself for questioning. However, within an hour of the interrogation, he was suddenly taken into NIB custody,” Afenyo-Markin stated.
The Minority Leader expressed that the move was questionable and further revealed that inquiries made at the NIB showed they were not handling the investigation.
“Why would the police, who are conducting the investigation and have their own holding cells, decide to place someone being investigated for a misdemeanour into the custody of the NIB?” he questioned.
“Our checks at the NIB confirm that they are neither interrogating nor investigating Abronye. According to them, the police merely sent him there to be held, and they accepted him for that purpose only,” he explained.
He questioned the rationale behind the police’s decision to transfer custody. “Why would the Ghana Police Service, while claiming to investigate someone, choose to detain him at the NIB instead of their own cells? Is this a form of punishment?” he asked.
He added that the police told the court they needed more time to continue their investigation and requested that he be remanded.
“At that point, the police told the court they needed more time to continue their investigation and requested that he be remanded. The judge granted the request and ordered his return to court today,” Afenyo-Markin added.
By Vera Owusu Sarpong
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