The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, has publicly called on the organizers of the #OccupyJulorbiHouse demonstration to furnish his office with concrete evidence of police brutality during the protest that took place between Thursday, September 21 and Saturday, September 23, 2023.
In a recent meeting with leadership of the Ghana Private Road Transport Union in Accra, Dr. Dampare addressed the ongoing controversy surrounding the demonstration. He highlighted the organizers’ failure to substantiate their claims of police brutality and abuse, several weeks after the protest.
“As I speak, after months of completing that demonstration till today, not a shred of evidence has been brought up to indicate that police brutalized them,” Dr. Dampare stated, emphasizing the need for concrete proof.
The #OccupyJulorbiHouse demonstration initially emerged as an expression of public discontent with some of the current happenings in the country, including opposition to the government’s economic policies and allegations of corruption. The protest resulted in the arrest of over 50 demonstrators by the police, leading to public outrage amid accusations of excessive force against unarmed civilians.
In response to these allegations, the police issued a statement asserting that the arrested individuals were taken into custody for unlawful assembly and violations of the Public Order Act.
He also claimed that the detained persons disregarded court documents served to the organizers, Democracy Hub, which warned against participating in the demonstration.
Dr. Dampare further assured the public that the police force is prepared to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter should the organizers of #OccupyJulorbiHouse provide the much-needed evidence of police brutality.