IGP, UK High Commissioner row: Both parties crossed the line – Kojo Asante
Dr. Kojo Asante, the Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) is not taking sides in the row between the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr. George Akufo-Dampare, and the British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson.
The British diplomat had incurred the wrath of Dr. Akuffo-Dampare, over comments she made following the arrest of #FixTheCountry convenor, Oliver Barker-Vormawor last month for careless and inconsiderate driving and non-observance of road markings at the East Legon tunnel in Accra.
Dr. Akuffo-Dampare in a strongly-worded statement, asked the diplomat tomind her own business when it came to matters of Ghana’s security and policing.
But Harriet Thompson maintains that her comment was not an act of interference that should warrant such a response from the police administration.
Reacting to the diplomatic row on The Point of View on Citi TV, Dr. Kojo Asante said both parties crossed the line.
He attempted viewing things from both sides, but said they could have used “more appropriate channels” to air their views.
“The tweet put out by the High Commissioner looked like it had some kind of innuendo that points to certain harassment in the Vormawor case. This is not so surprising as some of us had raised this issue, for instance, the arrangement before the court. There was some sort of abuse of power. So you can understand where she is coming from. But then you can understand where the IGP is also coming from in the sense that there is an assumption that when somebody is put before Court for very serious criminal offences like treason, and a representative of another country is trivialising it, it is unacceptable.”
“However, I do not think it was appropriate for him to respond to the UK High Commissioner. He could have raised the matter with the Foreign Affairs Minister, so it is handled diplomatically. I don’t think the UK High Commissioner was out of place to think that this is some form of harassment, but if you are a representative of a country, it is quite inappropriate to call out the police this way.”
He further urged the Police to create appropriate channels for the public to air their grievances.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry has begun diplomatic talks between the IGP and the British High Commissioner to Ghana.
Mr. Kojo Asante hopes the Ministry’s move will put the matter to rest.
source:Edna Agnes Boakye
