Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has condemned the Akufo-Addo administration for its double standards in law enforcement, favoring loyalists while targeting dissenters.
He argued that this inconsistency undermines the integrity of the justice system.
Awuni highlighted the stark contrast between the leniency afforded to the NPP vigilante group and the severe treatment faced by the Democracy Hub protestors.
He emphasized that while some groups appear to evade accountability, others are met with aggressive state action.
Accordingly, Awuni challenged the public to reflect on whether Ghana’s justice system truly operates fairly, questioning the implications of such disparities for democracy and the rule of law in the country.
“In the Akufo-Addo administration, thugs of the governing NPP attacked the Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council and forced the Regional Security Coordinator out of office. They vandalized his office and destroyed public property in the process.
“When 13 of them were arrested and put before the court after much pressure from citizens and civil society, some of the remaining thugs attacked the court and freed the 13 men standing trial”.
Manasseh Azure Awuni
He noted that media reports indicated the judge was swiftly escorted to safety amid escalating threats of an attack from a mob.
According to him, following widespread national outrage, authorities responded by arresting eight of the assailants involved in the incident.
Awuni also pointed out that the 13 members of the vigilante group, who had initially fled while standing trial, later turned themselves into the police.
Remarkably, they faced a rapid judicial process, culminating in fines that many observers deemed disproportionately lenient, with each member receiving just GHS 2,400.
This disparity in legal treatment, Awuni indicated, raises significant concerns about the consistency and fairness of the justice system in Ghana. “The 8 members of the vigilante group who were arrested for attacking the court and freeing the 13 were set free for ‘lack of evidence’ to prosecute them”.
Awuni Questions State’s Stance on Severity of Actions
Furthermore, Manasseh Azure Awuni questioned whether the state is implying that attacking a president’s appointee and forcing them from office, as well as assaulting the court to free individuals on trial, are considered less severe actions.
He contrasted this with the treatment of protests that involve blocking a road or removing a key from a police towing truck, highlighting concerns about the inconsistency in the state’s responses.
According to Awuni, this contrast in the perceived severity of actions raises troubling questions about the criteria used by the authorities to determine appropriate responses and the overall fairness of the justice system.
“Vormawor has said the police assaulted him. The police are saying the minor injuries he sustained were because he resisted a transfer to a different cell.
“They claimed they transferred him because he was planning to “compromise the security of the other inmates” of the cell”.
Manasseh Azure Awuni
Awuni stated that while individuals are free to choose which perspective to believe, there is no denying the state’s high-handedness in its treatment of Vormawor.
He cautioned that if the public condones the current harsh treatment of individuals involved, such as Osagyefo Oliver Barker Vormawor and the Democracy Hub, they may find themselves echoing the words of the Nazi-era pastor Martin Niemöller in the future.
“‘First, they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me’”.
Manasseh Azure Awuni quoting Martin Niemöller
Awuni urged Ghanaians to raise their voices when it truly matters to safeguard rights and uphold the rule of law, emphasizing that it must be applied equally to all.
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