The Bono Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwame Baffoe aka Abronye DC says Ghana Police has no right to restrain the “Fix the Country” protesters from demonstrating after the Supreme Court ruling.
According to Abrony DC, he has some doubts about the police explanation for their action against the protesters.
Contributing to a panel discussion on UTV's “Adekye Nsroma” he said; "My challenge with Ghana Police is that if the matter has no injunction order restraining the #Fixthecountry protesters from demonstrating, then I don't think the Police have any right to restrain them from demonstrating."
He added that the group constitutional right to demonstrate is embedded in Article 121 of the constitution.
"The only thing that was restraining them was the ex parte order, hence if the Supreme Court has squashed that order, then they have every right to demonstrate according to the law."
The Ghana Police Service says the ruling by the Supreme Court on the #Fixthecountry protest does not give clearance for its conveners to organise any demonstration.
According to the Police, the substantive case between the group and the Police was still pending at the High Court and scheduled to be heard on Monday, June 14, 2021.
It has therefore advised the public to disregard any calls to participate in any demonstration organised by the conveners of the “Fix the Country” protest which, to the Police, does not comply with the provisions of the Public Order Act. 1994 (Act 491).
Supreme Court ruling
The Supreme Court on Tuesday quashed an earlier order by the Accra High Court on May 6, 2021, which restrained the protestors from embarking on any demonstration.
In a unanimous decision, a five-member panel of the court held that the High Court exceeded its jurisdiction by making the order to last indefinite.
Following an ex parte application by the Accra Regional Police Command, on May 6, this year, the Accra High Court prohibited the #FixTheCountry Movement from embarking on a demonstration slated for May 9.
According to the court presided over by Justice Ruby Aryeetey, the prohibition order would be in place until the restriction on public gathering was lifted.
However, in its ruling, the Supreme Court held that per Order 25 rule 9 of the High Court (Civil Procedure Rules ), 2004, C.I 47, a restraining order secured through an ex parte application should last for 10 days.
It was the considered view of the apex court that for the High Court to have directed the prohibition order to be in place until the ban on public gathering was lifted meant the order was indefinite.
According to the court, the High Court exceeded its jurisdiction by going beyond the 10 day-threshold as stipulated by C.I 47
In a response to the ruling, the Police in a statement issued on Tuesday said the ruling by the Supreme Court does not give clearance for the conveners to organise any demonstration since the substantive case between them and the Police was still pending at the High Court.
It said, “The Supreme Court quashed an earlier Order granted ex parte by the High Court on May 6 2021, restraining the conveners of the "Fix-the-Country" protest from embarking on a public demonstration. The decision of the Supreme Court was based on the indefinite terms in which the ex parte Order was made.”
“However, the Supreme Court refused to restrain the Ghana Police Service or their agents, assigns, workmen or workwomen from unlawfully interfering with the constitutional right of the conveners of the "Fix-the-Country" protest from embarking on a public demonstration,” it added.
