General News of Tuesday, 21 August 2018
Source: Graphic.com.gh
2018-08-21
Deputy General Secretary of NDC, Koku Anyidoho
The Ghana Police Service has dropped the ‘treason’ case against Mr Koku Anyidoho, the Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
A police source told Graphic Online that the Attorney General’s Department had written to them “unconditionally” to drop the case against Anyidoho.
The source said the Attorney General’s Department noted that Koku had not committed any crime per the laws of Ghana, therefore the need for the case to be dropped.
Background
Mr Anyidoho was arrested by the Criminal Investigations Department of the Ghana Police Service on Tuesday, March 27, 2018 after he predicted that a civil revolt may unseat President Akufo-Addo.
He was picked up by armed policemen at the Press Centre in Accra moments after a press briefing on an intended demonstration over the Ghana-US military defence cooperation agreement and was subsequently charged with treason.
Mr Koku Anyidoho in an interview on Accra-based Happy FM had suggested that President Akufo-Addo was likely to suffer a fate similar to his father who was overthrown as president by a military coup in 1972.
“Somebody should tell Nana Akufo-Addo that history has a very interesting way of repeating itself,” the NDC firebrand said.
“On the January 13, 1972 a certain Col. Ignatius Kutu Acheampong led a movement that removed the Progress Party from power. Busia was the Prime Minister and Akufo-Addo’s father was a ceremonial president. Somebody should tell Nana Akufo-Addo that history has a very interesting way of repeating itself.
“There’ll be a civil revolt. There’ll be a people’s movement. During President John Mahama’s tenure didn’t we receive similar threats from the likes of Let My Vote Count and OccupyGhana,” the former presidential spokesperson opined.
Koku Anyidoho added: “There’ll be a civilian coup d’etat; there’ll be a social revolution and the movement is starting on Wednesday. He [Akufo-Addo] will be fed up at the Presidency.”
The arrest led to a standoff between the police and supporters of the NDC, with members of the latter group taking over the main road in front of the Police Headquarters in Accra, blocking traffic for a considerable duration.
The stand-off ended only after the police forcibly drove the party supporters away shooting rubber bullets and throwing hot water at them.