General News of Wednesday, 8 September 2010

Source: Citi FM

AFAG demands IGP's resignation

A Pressure Group, Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) says it intends to make a formal complaint to the Ghana Police Service, for the immediate resignation of the Inspector General Police, Paul Tawiah Quaye. The group has accused the IGP of failing to defend the constitution, which upholds judicial independence.

At a Press Conference on Tuesday September 7, AFAG also demanded the immediate resignation of the National Chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress, Dr Kwabena Adjei.

AFAG added that Kwabena Adjei should be arrested and prosecuted. According to the group Dr Kwabena Adjei’s Judicial Cleansing comments are subversive of the 1992 Constitution and should have earned him an invitation from the Ghana Police Service.

A leading member of the group, Samuel Awuku, told Citi News that AFAG intends to take a number of steps to protect and defend the independence of the judiciary.

“If members of the bench, the only place where Ghanaians can seek redress and justice are reporting and are also crying because they are living in fear then AFAG as a civil society organization, we owe it as a constitutional duty to enforce the provisions of the constitution which is the sacrosanct nature of the judiciary”.

“We will make a formal complaint to the Police Service for Kwabena Adjei to be arrested. Mind you the minority in parliament even stated their position that based on these treasonable comments the man should be arrested to even explain further and still the man has not been invited by the police”.

“AFAG’s demonstration would not only be the one way kind of thing that you always see it. We would make sure that everybody that needs to petitioned, that is an institution, as a diplomatic firm, any diplomatic mission that operates in Ghana would be fully served”.

Meanwhile, the Public Affairs Director of the Ghana Police Service has described as shameful and baseless calls by the Pressure Group Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG), for the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to resign.

AFAG’s call comes after claims by the Opposition New Patriotic Party that the security service performed abysmally during the August 31 by-election at Atiwa in the Eastern Region.

But in a sharp response, the Public Affairs Director of the Ghana Police Service Supt. Kwesi Ofori said AFAG’s calls are baseless, shameful and unfortunate.

He told Eyewitness News on Citi FM on Tuesday, that AFAG was being hypocritical saying the group had failed to condemn supporters of the NPP in Atiwa who took the law into their own hands and decided to block roads.

Supt. Ofori also denied AFAG’s claims that the police in 2009 failed to deal with perpetrators of clashes at the Agbobloshie market in Accra, between some Nanumbas and Kokumbas, perceived to be supporters of the NDC and NPP.