The tension which accompanied the arrest of Bernard Antwi-Boasiako by agents of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) was as unnecessary as it was avoidable.
Of course the approach to effecting the arrest attracted so much attention that many questions were posed about the motive when alternative methods existed.
There was no cause to think that the suspect’s arrest was going to meet with resistance, an invitation as done by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) could have been preferable and more productive.
The exuberance exhibited by some security agents with the approval of their bosses leave much to be desired.
Perhaps as many are thinking, the intention was to humiliate and break him down. That was the only reason why we witnessed the kind of show put up by the EOCO agents with the support of some uniformed cops and soldiers.
An order from above was said to have been issued, hence the quickness to execute the order to the satisfaction of the ordering authority in the corridor of ephemeral power. Carrying such orders to please the boss or bosses and even doing more is referred to as ‘eye service’ in the military. That was what we saw. The calling in of reinforcement and the subsequent reckless driving by some of the uniformed security personnel could have led to avoidable bloodshed had some persons been run over.
In a world which is transient, when actors on its stage forget themselves and assume the power of the Almighty, invincibility and immortality, we can only caution such mere creatures of the Creator to be mindful about the reality of their being, where they are for a limited period.
When the pendulum of power swings to our side and we are at the throttles of state, let us remember that tempora mutantur, to wit as Romans of yore said, ‘Time Changes.’
We wonder what kind of reports the foreign missions here are going to file to their home countries as part of their mandate. Of course it would be about the glaring human rights abuses being meted out to political opponents by those in power.
Chairman Wontumi, the man at the centre of the storm, is not above the law. After his engagement with the Police CID, he could have simply been invited by the EOCO interrogators, and we can bet he would have obliged the invitation.
We long for the day when political opponents will no longer be slapped surreptitiously with charges of causing financial loss to the state.
Those who genuinely cause financial loss to the state should be dealt with. This should be done in tandem with the law.
The state must also exhibit fairness and objectivity, not selectivity in the execution of its mandate of protecting the public purse.
We are not seeing this and think that this does not cast the government in good light.
If the man at the centre of this commentary did any wrong, he should be taken through due process and in the full glare of public attention.
Such vengeance theatricals from the rule book of descendants of the PNDC can no longer cow us into submission.