Lead Convenor of Democracy Hub, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, has clarified his actions during the recent #ReOccupyJulorbiHouse protest, where he took the ignition key from a police towing vehicle.
He stated that his intention was to stop the truck from potentially harming protesters as law enforcement attempted to tow a vehicle carrying essential supplies for the demonstration. Following this incident, Barker-Vormawor was arrested and faced charges related to his conduct during the protest.
“One of the things is that we brought a little van that has all our equipment inside. It has water, placards, medicine, food, and a public address system. The vehicle had just come and was parked under a tree.
Then we saw police officers, and that’s when the escalation started. We saw police officers start to go around the vehicle, presumably thinking that we were going to use the vehicle to do something.
In fact, the vehicle was parked under the tree, so I called the driver and told him to lock the vehicle and remove a laptop that was in there; it can stand there; it’s not a problem,” he explained in an interview he granted to Metro TV before his arrest on Monday, September 23, 2024.
“Shortly thereafter, we saw them bringing a tow truck. Despite the individuals and lives there, they started pushing the tow truck right on our legs, and this was deeply concerning to us. So we were finding all kinds of ways to prevent them from towing the vehicle which our supplies were in; this was a humanitarian vehicle,” he added.
The activist stated that he was compelled to remove the ignition key of the truck as a last resort to stop the vehicle from causing injury to the protesters.
Contrary to some claims, he emphasised that his aim was to ensure the safety of the protesters as he immediately threw the key into a crowd of police officers gathered around the scene.
So I turned the vehicle off in order to stop it from continuing to press onto protesters that were there, and what do I do? I moved towards where the other police were and threw the key towards them,” he explained.
“The vehicle continued to back onto us; eventually you see them start pressing in on us. So you see them pressing in, pushing on me with their batons. So I knew that we had to find a way to extricate ourselves if not people were going to get seriously injured.
“So then you see me eventually find a way to walk out of the police vehicle, go around the police vehicle to see how we can find a way to stop this vehicle from continuing to press on people in order to save lives. So I go in there and I see that they had abandoned the vehicle and it was still on.
Oliver Barker-Vormawor is among more than 50 individuals facing a range of charges, including conspiracy, unlawful assembly, and assault on a public officer, stemming from a three-day protest that escalated into chaos, resulting in numerous arrests.
The prosecution alleges that Barker-Vormawor forcibly entered a police towing vehicle, unauthorizedly shutting off the engine and taking out the ignition key. Following his court appearance, he was ordered to remain in custody by a judge in Accra.