General News of Wednesday, 3 July 2019

Source: classfmonline.com

Lawyer begins online petition for Afoko’s release

Lawyer Francis-Xavier Sosu Lawyer Francis-Xavier Sosu

A human rights lawyer Francis-Xavier Sosu has begun an online petition to collect signatures as a means of piling pressure on the government to release Mr Gregory Afoko who is being held for the alleged murder of Adams Mahama, the former Upper East Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

The petition according to Mr Sosu is to highlight the abuse of the legal process and bureaucracy to detain and deny Mr Afoko of his basic human rights, the abuse of the police service towards him and the total disregard of the judicial decisions.

Although the court granted a bail application by lawyers for Mr Afoko and bail conditions duly met the police have refused to release him.

This Mr Sosu believes is travesty of justice hence the launch of the #Release Gregory Afoko online petition.

Speaking to Class News Mr Sosu said: “What it is now is a deliberate abuse of power to deny the fundamental rights of a citizen and its so shameful.

“We hope that the GBA is listening, the Judicial Council will say something about it, the police council will say something about it, we are looking forward to parliamentarians raising statements in parliament in respect of things like these because today you’re free, tomorrow it could be you.

“Any Ghanaian can be subjected to an unfair treatment tomorrow, should we stay quiet? No! we must speak against it and we’ll go to every length including advocating at the international space. If we have to send petition to the African Human Rights Commission, the Human Right Commission of the United Nations, wherever we need to go, this will continue until Gregory is released because what is happening is unfair, its unacceptable in a democracy as ours.”