Some 29 persons have been arrested concerning the violence that erupted during Arise Ghana’s demonstration on Tuesday, 28 June 2022.
A statement from the police confirming the arrest said they “were arrested for their participation in violent attacks on the police and some members of the public, including school children”.
The police said available video footage of the event is being reviewed, and all other persons identified for taking part in the attacks and inciting the violence will be arrested and brought to face justice.
The peaceful demonstration turned chaotic with injuries to some protestors and 12 police officers who were at the receiving end of the stones being pelted by the protestors.
The chaos erupted after the police formed a human barricade to stop the protestors who insisted on using their original route along the Ring Road towards the Ako-Adjei Interchange to the Independence Square, even though a court had requested an alternative route.
The law enforcement agency added that organisers of the demonstration will also be arrested and put before court for the attacks and damage to public property, in line with the provisions of Section 3 of the Public Order Act, (Act 491).
Meanwhile, the police have urged the public to be mindful of a “calculated falsehood and misinformation” being peddled by some leaders of Arise Ghana regarding the chaotic turn of events.
“We urge the public to disregard the untruths and treat them with the contempt they deserve, for the footage and images of the event speak for themselves,” the police added.
Reactions to Tuesday’s chaotic demonstration
Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has said that those who threw stones during the demonstration by Arise Ghana were all captured on tape; hence, it will make identification for arrest and prosecution easier.
According to him, it is during prosecution in court that it will be determined whether these persons are police officers as claimed by the organisers of the demonstration.
“When they are arrested and put before the court, we will find out whether they are police or not,” he said on Good Evening Ghana Tuesday evening.
In a tweet, the police also expressed disappointment at the leadership of Arise Ghana for inciting their followers to cause mayhem.
“Attack on police in the Ongoing Arise Ghana Demonstration. What a shame, we were there to protect you and ensure your safety, but you throw stones at us, injure and hurt us. This behaviour is unacceptable and must be condemned,” the tweet read.
The police, who had earlier announced that 12 of its officers had been injured, in an update, said they had been transferred to the police hospital in Accra for further treatment.
Meanwhile, the leadership of the Arise Ghana movement has dismissed claims that members threw stones at the police during the demonstration.
At a presser shortly after the chaotic scene, a leader of Arise Ghana, who also doubles as the National Communications Officer of the opposition NDC, Sammy Gyamfi, said the police have been embarking on Public Relations (PR) gimmick to brand the demonstrators as violent citizens.
The young lawyer accused the police of planting people to pose as protestors and cause mayhem during the demonstration.
“We did not go there with sticks; we did not go there with stones; we went there with our voice to protest against the obnoxious E-levy, which amounts to thievery. Our hands are clean; our conscience is clean, and we believe in what we are doing,” Mr. Gyamfi stressed.