It was reported yesterday that a group of soldiers believed to have come from the Air Force base in Takoradi led by one Flt/Lt Joseph Appiah went to my own backyard in Kwesimintsim to beat up one pregnant policewoman mercilessly and another police officer who were on duty at the charge office. They vandalised the whole place and destroyed state properties when there were hardened criminals in cells. With this, I just can’t think far. I can’t madness. What a woow !
Trained soldiers? What kind of training do soldiers receive for them to believe that they are superior to police and for that matter would want to attack the police at the least opportunity? This weird thinking of the soldiers must be corrected before it escalates into crisis beyond our control one day. I am not too sure the police will always sit down for these soldiers to mobilise themselves to attack them as it has been happening. One day Monkey go market and he no go come back.
This year alone haven’t had enough beatings and killings already? For a group of soldiers to mobilise themselves to a police station and beat up a pregnant policewoman and one other police officer, we are watching the the National Peace Council, the Christian Council and Religious groups, all the Human Rights activists particularly right for women as well as our trusted and unshakable police administration. I trust and know that this time round, they will put these miscreants in the military uniform in the right frame of the law. The law will take its full course.
I have been wondering about this whole thing the whole of the night though I am not directly involved but I must say that, I fear for my safety because any soldier can meet me and start to beat me up mercilessly just because I am trying to enforce the law per the dictates of the constitution? Should that be the case? It’s getting scary but no one seems to care. I am gripped with fear and panic. This nonsense must stop with immediate effect.
This is not the first time criminally minded soldiers have mobilised themselves to attack police officers performing their legitimate duties. Some two or three years ago, a group of soldiers went on rampage in Kumasi and started beating police officers left, right and center. Nothing much was heard about it. It died naturally. We didn’t hear whether those unscrupulous soldiers were brought to book to serve as a deterrent or not. In that same year a soldier shot and killed police officer somewhere in Accra. There were several attacks on the police that same years by the soldiers and up to now, we are yet to believe that something concrete was done to those miscreants who call themselves soldiers.
This is not the first time military men are mobilising themselves to attack the police whilst all look on unconcerned. It is not the second time, the third time nor shall it be the last time. They will continue to beat us mercilessly because they are above the law. Since time immemorial, the soldiers have been beaten the police and nothing meaningful is done about it so they always have the guts to attack police stations with impunity. Something that makes civilians believe that soldiers are stronger and superior to the police. It’s a bit of nonsense that must stop at all cost.
A soldier and a police officer should complement each efforts in crime combat but not beating the other particularly when a pregnant woman is involved. It’s barbaric, criminal, lawlessness and shameful and so must be condemned in no uncertain terms and perpetrators must be brought to book for the law take its natural course. Justice must be served without fear or favour.
The facts are that a team of police officers on patrols arrested a soldier who is believed to be a member of British Army who was drunk and driving in town misbehaving. He was brought to charge office to be detained to become sober and be released, then a whole lieutenant from the Air Force base leads a bandit of criminally minded soldiers to come and attack a poor pregnant policewoman and her station orderly on duty in attempt to free a British soldier who is misbehaving in Ghana. What an impudence of a dying cockroach?
Ghanaian soldier solidarising with a British soldier to cause mayhem at the police station right here in Ghana? As if that is not enough, in the course of the day another group of soldiers mobilise themselves to the charge office and start to beat people again because the police arrested their lieutenant and even admitted him to bail.
Any time the military attack the police, there seems to me that these young soldiers act on a command from a superior authority and after which they would shield them from justice.
What is missing hear is that these soldiers have failed to know that the paradigm has shifted from the military lawlessness in the revolutionary days to a democratic dispensation where the rule of law is supreme but not military superiority. They should be taught the right democratic lessons where the rule of law is supreme not military superiority. They should be made to learn the hard way for other upcoming soldiers to learn that soldiers have a limitation as far as the law is concerned. The soldier is not above the law.
I hear the lieutenant and his men have been released on bail. There is nothing wrong about that because the supreme court has ruled that even murderers can be granted bail but a whole lot of things will go wrong if this case dies a natural death as it has been with other cases. On other hand, appropriate authorities taking swift actions to put these miscreants before the law will affirm our trust in them and for that matter we will rely on their interventions should a “useless headed” bandits who feel they are “macho” than police officers decide to attack the police next time but if nothing happens, common sense should tell us defending ourselves against criminally minded soldiers is the only sensible way to stop these unreasonable attacks from people who should be our compatriots but are fast becoming our enemies now.
Bail doesn’t mean end of case. We will be here observing matters arising as a result of this case but somebody should please tell the soldiers to get it right in their thinking skulls that we have fast moved away from military lawlessness in the revolutionary days to a new dispensation where the rule of supreme and not military superiority. Before the law, we are equal so they should start to think straight. I think it’s even time to set camps for them in forest zones and relocate them from cities and towns.
Justice for Kwesimintsim police !
The law is supreme not the military !
Nsemhunu a kwa kwa
Ahanta Apemenyimheneba Kwofie III
[email protected]
#Ahantadiaries_2016_12_18