The Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper has strongly condemned some of the inscriptions written on placards carried by some Ghanaian demonstrators in Germany.
Some Ghanaian residents in Berlin, Germany’s national capital decided to stage a demonstration when President John Dramani Mahama visited Germany a few days ago.
The protestors, most of whom wielded placards which read, 'Drop your annoying Mahama,' 'Drop that yam,' 'NDC: National Distributors of Cocaine,' 'Stop cocaine trade in Ghana,' 'No German loan for NDC,' 'NDC: National Defenders of Corruption,' 'Where is Ghana's oil money?' 'Stop family and tribal politics,' expressed disappointment in the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration.
This generated controversy back home in Ghana as the ruling government condemned the demonstration and accused the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) of masterminding it.
There were also reports that two of the demonstrators had been arrested in Berlin for not having the required immigration documents.
However, the Germany Branch of the NPP in a statement, denied the arrest of any of the demonstrators.
Reacting to some of these issues in a panel discussion on Radio Gold’s Alhaji and Alhaji, Kwesi Pratt condemned the kind of message the demonstrators used even though he believes the demonstration itself is not wrong.
“…the 1992 constitution provides right for Ghanaians to demonstrate and so the attempt to demonise demonstration is irresponsible and unfortunate….but the fact that we as citizens have the right to exercise a certain power, does not mean we can violate other people’s right and engage in things which can only be described as vulgar by the decent society. What justification is there for any demonstrator to call a female minister a prostitute? What right does any demonstrator have to put up a placard which says the President is an imbecile? What right do you have to put up a placard and describe people as thieves when you don’t have basis…that is the problem with the demonstration in Germany” he stated.
He also added that: “the problem is the message that the demonstrators took out there and I am completely scandalised with some of the message that came out. They first of all are not verifiable; some of them are indeed to all intents and purposes vulgar. Nowhere in the world will any people allow any group of people to describe their President as an imbecile…let us agree that you don’t like him and you don’t like his policies; indeed I don’t like all the policies of this government. There are some of the policies that I am opposed to including the attempt to privatised the Electricity Company of Ghana; but that does not give you the right to insult the President in this manner; Imbecile Oh my goodness Imbecile? How can you do that but it was done in Germany…this is my worry”
Source: Rebecca Addo Tetteh/Peacefmonline.com
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