Some 10 years ago, in 2014, a group of Ghanaians demonstrating against harsh economic conditions clashed with the Ghana Police Service.
Led largely by some members of the middle class, including Ace Kojo Ankomah, a legal practitioner; Yoofi Grant of Databank; Dr. Esi Ansah, a lecturer at Ashesi University; Kofi Kapito, the Chief Executive Officer of the Consumer Protection Agency; Comfort Ocran of Legacy and Legacy; Ken Ofori-Atta, a co-founder of Databank; Selorm Branttie, the Communications Director of IMANI Ghana; and a former Chief Marketing Officer of MTN, George Andah, the July 4, 2014 protest dubbed Occupy Flagstaff House remains one of the cardinal days of reference for civil activism in Ghana.
For the protesters, their ultimate destination was the Flagstaff House, the seat of government.
The protest from its beginning was marred with clashes between participants and the police as the participants converged at the Afua Sutherland Park.
The police, who insisted that the initial agreement with the organizers was to have the protesters gather at the park while their leadership marched to the presidency to present their petition, locked the gate of the park.
Angered by the action of the police, the protesters began to force their way out of the park, causing the police to eventually open the gate and march alongside the protesters.
However, upon reaching the National Theatre, the police formed a wall to stop the protesters from marching further.
According to a Graphic.com.gh report, a 45-minute standoff ensued between the protesters and the police.
“You cannot go beyond this point and that is not negotiable,” the Head of the Police Public Relations Directorate, DSP Cephas Arthur, warned when some of the protesters approached him.
Amidst pouring rain, the protesters picketed in front of armored police vehicles and refused to disperse.
In a video report by Metro TV, some of the protesters described the actions of the police as a clear violation of their constitutionally given rights.
“It is our right to protest, everybody protested. I mean all those in government, many of them were student leaders who protested in their time. Had they been stopped like we are being stopped today, would they be where they are?... these [protesters] are professionals; doctors, lawyers, bankers… Nothing would have happened if you just followed us quietly, we present our petition and come back. But what is anybody afraid of?” a protester questioned.
“This is my home… I am in Ghana and Ghana is my home. I can protest anywhere I want,” he added.
In what is described as a rat race between the police and the protesters, the crowd converged at Afrikoko where, surrounded by battle-ready riot policemen armed with tear gas canisters, a convener of the protest addressed the crowd.
“Ghanaians have to grapple with extreme discomfort, lowered productivity, the ever-rising rate of inflation, and continuous loss of their purchasing power. Ghanaians have to come to grips with limited access to essential services such as quality education and health care. Further, Ghanaians have to come to grips with poor quality of service provided by the utility companies, which turns out to be a mismatch to the constant increment in utility tariffs,” he said.
After several minutes of a standoff with the police, the leadership of the protest was eventually allowed to enter the seat of government where a Deputy Chief of Staff, Ms. Valerie Sawyer, received their petition on behalf of the government.
In the end, four protesters were arrested for supposedly going against the instructions of the police while the police were accused of brutalizing some of the protesters.
Three out of the four arrested persons were released by the police while the fourth person was granted a GH¢5,000 bail and asked to report himself at the headquarters of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at the Police Headquarters.
Watch a video report on the protest below:
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