Arab spring cooks …Akufo-Addo’s men pretend to not see the signs

Evidence abounds that a growing mass of Ghanaians angered by economic stagnation laced with perceptions of corruption have not hidden their guts to defy court orders, resist Police directives and even violently attack State-security personnel in their tenacious quest to embark on anti-government protests styled with trappings of the notorious ‘Arab Spring’.

Yesterday’s incident in which the Arise Ghana protesters vandalized vehicles of the Ghana Police Service, pelted Police officers with stones and injured 12 over a disagreement on which streets the protest-walk should take ought not to be taken as an isolated incident if the country’s security agencies are not asleep as it seems to be.

The Police Service had insisted the protesters respect an order from the High Court which clearly stated that the route of the march should be from the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, through Farisco, the TUC area, to the Independence Square, but the organizers of the protest insisted that they would use another route which included briefly passing through the Seat of Government and the disagreement was what led to the clash.

A police statement said the attacks on the officers were unprovoked and unfortunate.

They responded by the use of teargas to disperse the demonstrators who later regrouped and started to burn car tires in the middle of the streets, clearly against the Public Order Act.

The police intervened again to quench the flames and clear the streets for a free flow of traffic.

It is curious how the demonstrators marshaled the car tires and fuel to set them ablaze. The large quantity of pelted stones that littered the streets after the clash was most likely to have been specially organized beforehand for the intended purpose.

The fire-brigade approach and fact that the tires, flammable materials and large quantity of stones were never detected by the security agencies if unfortunate. And even scarier is that fact that they did not pick any intelligence reports ahead of the clashes.

It is significant to note that organizers of the protests had previously requested to pitch camp for 48-hours straight at the Presidency in what would have been both a day and night vigil demonstration but that request was quashed through the Courts.

Earlier this month, another group of planned protesters had officially requested Police permission for them to carry guns and a private security team to the Presidency where they had planned to camp and demonstrate against the Government.

If that request had been granted, it would have mean that each morning President Akufo-Addo was headed to his office, he would have to drive through an armed crowed,

In that episode, the protesters had also requested to be allowed to picket at the Ghana Police Headquarters and the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) where they would demand to speak directly to the nation on GTV to layout their grievances.

Videos and pictures from Tuesday’s Arise Ghana demonstration, were not worth writing home about.
They were violent, bloody and were nothing near what should pertain in a multi-party democracy governed by a Constitution that respects the Rule of Law.

The Sad Part

The gloomy signs are certainly not ideal for public safety and the persons in charge of Ghana’s security should be reminded that a stitch in time saves nine.

They ought not stand akimbo in complacency and leave the country’s internal security in the hands of God.

Already, the challenge of youth unemployment has become a national security threat unresolved and the least provocation or stimulation of emotions and passions could be eruptive.

The country’s polarized political environment has largely deprived it from open and sincere discussions on such critical challenges without considering vital maters from selfish partisan lenses.

Organizers yesterday’s protests that ended in violent clashes have vowed to regroup on the streets today without retreating and this would be done in the midst of the tension and newly-created mutual mistrust with the Police meant to protect them.