There was drama at the Accra Circuit where the 39 persons arrested during the anti-illegal small-scale mining (galamsey) demonstration by the Democratic Hub were arraigned on Tuesday, September 24, 2024.
Relatives of the arrested protestors were bemused by the fact that the police had been keeping their relations for more than 24 hours after their arrest.
A father of one of the arrested demonstrators could not hold back his frustration over the arrest of his son.
He wondered why his son would be arrested and kept in police custody while the person behind the galamsey menace, which is destroying the country’s water, remained free.
The man rained curses on persons behind the continuous detainment of his son, adding that the authorities can take the life of his son if they want to.
“My great grandfather’s land was acquired 150 years ago, cocoa farms, it’s all gone because of galamsey. They destroyed it. You cannot drink, you cannot eat any food because cyanide has gone into the soil and this is what these young people are fighting about. Mother Ghana, only God and posterity will judge everyone involved in this.
“What is their crime? Their crime is trying to protect our very nature, our country called Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah’s Ghana, and this is where we are now. They are the criminals. The criminals are continuing with their jobs and our sons are the criminals. God save Mother Ghana,” the visibly angry father fumed.
He added, “My son has been arrested since Sunday. He just came out of the court and God, nature will judge everyone who has the authority to deal with this but refuses and is condoning and conniving. They send them, they can kill them. If they like, they should kill them.”
Meanwhile, the 39 people who were arrested for engaging in various acts of lawlessness at the 37 Intersection in Accra on 22nd and 23rd September, 2022, were remanded by the court.
The court remanded 28 of them into police custody and the remaining 11 into prison custody.
According to a statement issued by the Police Service, thirty (30) of the accused persons are to reappear before the court on 8th October, 2024, while nine others are to appear before the court on 11th October, 2024.
“The remaining suspects will be put before the court to face justice. The case is being prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney-General,” the statement said.
Watch a video of his remarks below:
