#FixTheCountry demo: Economic fighters disappointed in Akufo-Addo

Pressure group Economic Fighters has expressed disappointment in the administration of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo over the frustrations conveners of the #FixTheCountry protesters are going through ever since they announced their intentions to demonstrate against broken systems in the country.

Speaking on the Morning Update on TV XYZ, JF Koomson, a communications commander for the Fighters indicated that the protest which they support was inspired by the famous ‘Kume preko’ demonstration President Akufo-Addo and his friends led in the 90s.

He could not come to terms with the frustrations of the groups leading the protest under the regime of a man that fought a culture of silence before becoming the president of the country in 2017.

“We joined the Kumi Preko demonstration 25 years ago just to make sure things work in the country. And today the leader of the ‘kume preko’ is in power and preventing others from demonstration,” Koomson said.

Buttressing his posture, Koomson said the protest that had been prevented by the GhanaPolice Service is to lift the pertinent challenges Ghanaians are facing on daily basis that need to be fixed by the leaders.

“There are people in this country without access to potable water and we owe them a duty to make things work for them,” he stated as he expressed readiness to hit the streets.

He added, “There’s a village called Adjom close to Dunkwa on Offin without the nearest health care. There are no accessible means of even getting to the nearest hospital.”

Setbacks

Over the last two months, what started as an online protest about broken systems within the Ghanaian economy has gained grounds in national and international discourse, with many young people jumping on the hashtags, demanding better governance from the ruling government.

The conveners of the protests have cited issues such as bad infrastructure, healthcare gaps, high standards of living, and high youth unemployment as some key concerns they demand addressed by the government within the shortest time possible.

Although the campaign has enjoyed remarkable success on social media, attempts to hold a physical protest and to present a formal petition to the government have since proved futile, as the planned protests have been hit by lawsuits that have stalled the protests from seeing the light of day.

The Verdict

The Accra High Court, however, has struck out an application by the police seeking to stop the demonstration by the #FixTheCountry movement.

In a ruling today, the court presided over by Justice Ruby Aryeetey, struck out the application on the basis that the date for the protest (May 9) had already passed so there was no protest to be stopped.

“I’m of the opinion that the planned demonstration is passed and therefore the application is moot,” she ruled.

She, however, stated that in the event the #FixTheCountry protestors wanted to embark on a new protest, they must go through all the laid down procedures including the one relating to the restrictions on public gathering.