The head of the Huahi Royal Family of Boadi in the Ashanti Region has filed a suit against the Inspector General of Police (IGP) over his unlawful arrest by officers of the Ghana Police Service.
According to him, before his release, he was humiliated, subjected to torture and embarrassed at a palace instead of being processed for court.
“That I am advised by counsel and I respectfully concur with the advice that the police has no right, power or authority to arrest, restrict or detain a suspect without officially cautioning or charging him, and that any such arrest, restriction or detention contrary to the rules and procedures enshrined in the Constitution amounts to flagrant disregard for the Constitution and a breach of the constitutionally guaranteed rights of the suspect,” the plaintiff stated in his application.
The plaintiff added that despite a petition to the Police Service to interrogate the matter, no concrete solutions had been reached, hence the suit.
Reliefs
Badu is asking the court to declare as unconstitutional his arrest, adding that the police violated his fundamental human rights guaranteed under the 1992 Constitution. As part of his reliefs, he asks for the following:
“An order directed at the respondents to pay me an amount of GH¢500,000 as compensation for my unlawful arrest and restriction pursuant to Article 14(5) of the 1992 Constitution.”
He is also asking for an order perpetually restraining the respondents, particularly all police officers involved in the misconduct under the authority of the respondent, from unlawfully arresting, restricting and/or detaining him ever again.
