Judge who remanded Democracy Hub demonstrators erred in law - Former Dep. Attorney-General

Former Deputy Attorney-General, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has criticized the Circuit Court Judge who remanded some protesters of the Democracy Hub group following their recent demonstration over the weekend.

Dr. Ayine's comments come in response to the Accra Circuit Court's decision on Tuesday, September 24, to remand 28 protesters into police custody, with an additional 11 protesters remanded into prison custody. The demonstrators were charged with conspiracy to commit a crime, specifically unlawful assembly.

On Wednesday, 11 more protesters were remanded into police custody on charges of conspiracy to commit a crime, unlawful assembly, causing unlawful damage, offensive conduct conducive to the breach of peace, and assaulting a public officer, among other charges.

In an interview on TV3, as monitored by GhanaWeb, Dr. Ayine argued that the judge made a legal error in remanding the protesters.

"The judge erred in the application of the law. The evidence clearly showed that they should have been granted bail because these are misdemeanors. Additionally, their lawyer confirmed that they have fixed places of residence and are gainfully employed. These are ordinary citizens of the country. Where would they run to? In such circumstances, no judge should curtail a citizen's liberty for even an hour. So, I disagree with the judge. As for whether the judge was manipulated, I have no opinion on that," Dr. Ayine emphasized.

He further advised the lawyers of the accused to act swiftly to secure their release.

"The issue is that the court has remanded them for two weeks. The only option available to their lawyers is to appeal the decision. If the appeal is filed promptly before the High Court and, given the urgency, the High Court rules on it within a few days, they can regain their liberty. Otherwise, they will have to remain in custody until their next court date," said Dr. Ayine, who is also the Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga East said.

KA

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