A member of the Fix the Country movement, under the auspices of Democracy Hub, has been arrested at Kotoka International Airport (KIA).
Ralph St.
Williams, also known as Fellow Ghanaians, was arrested while en route to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region ahead of the group's protest on Saturday.
The convener of the movement, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, made this known in a tweet on X on Thursday, September 19.
Mr Barker-Vormawor believes the arrest is linked to Fellow Ghanaians' participation in the "Enough is Enough" demonstration organised by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) against the Electoral Commission. "It appears that Ralph's arrest stems from his peaceful participation in Tuesday's 'Enough is Enough' demonstration, where he highlighted government mismanagement by opening the National Cathedral pit, a site that has already cost Ghana 58 million cedis, for symbolic swimming," portions of the tweet read.
A viral video of the suspect shows him tearing down some posters at the Cathedral project site and expressing his anger over the misuse of public funds.
Press Statement: Arrest of #FixTheCountry Convenor - Ralph St Williams (Fellow Ghanaians)19th September 2024We have just been informed that our colleague Ralph St Williams, known widely as Fellow Ghanaians, has been arrested at Kotoka International Airport while enroute to… pic.twitter.com/fa3tahvPBN- Osagyefo Oliver Barker-Vormawor (@barkervogues) September 19, 2024 But the convener of the movement also alleged that the arrest was aimed at preventing Ralph St.
Williams from participating in the upcoming 'Say No to Galamsey' protest, and to "intimidate activists fighting for transparency and environmental justice." Mr Barker-Vormawor condemned the arrest and demanded the immediate release of their member.
He also called for an official apology from the authorities for what he described as a blatant attempt to silence critical voices.
Meanwhile, he said that the group will be submitting a formal petition to the Inspector General of Police to address the situation.
Tags: Democracy Hub Kotoka International Airport (KIA) Related to this story We've not stopped Democracy Hub's demo; we only disagree with choice of location - Police Police say comprehensive security measures in place for Democracy Hub demo Police secures injunction against Democracy Hub planned protest Democracy Hub plans 3-day demo starting Sept.
21 GACL suspends $20 charge on all round-trip airline tickets for travelers at KIA Transport Minister summoned over planned extra $20 charge for travelers at KIA Travelers using KIA to pay extra $20 on round-trip tickets from May 1 #OccupyJulorbiHouse: Democracy Hub to stage another protest from Dec.
1 to 31 #OccupyJulorBiHouse: Arrest of protesters shameful, unlawful - Sammy Gyamfi #OccupyJulorBiHouse demo: Organisers duly served court process through their lawyers - Police