NDC communicator Wonder Victor Kutor has challenged arguments surrounding the manner in which EOCO attempted to arrest Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah at the Accra High Court, saying the absence of an identification card does not automatically make an arrest unlawful.
Kutor was speaking on New Day on TV3 about the September 23 confrontation between EOCO officers and Baffour Awuah, which happened before the agency obtained a High Court warrant for his arrest.
He said some lawyers had focused on whether the officer who approached Baffour Awuah produced an identification card, but argued that the law recognises circumstances in which even a private person can make an arrest.
“Look, under Act 30, the Criminal Offences Act, there are circumstances where even a private person can arrest you,” Kutor said.
“We are all lawyers. Section 2 of Act 30, a private person can even arrest you under some circumstances.”
He therefore cautioned against reducing the entire dispute to the question of whether the EOCO officer showed identification.
“So don’t say, ‘Oh, bring your ID, bring your ID.’ There are circumstances where a private person can even arrest you,” he said.
The September 23 incident became a major point of contention after EOCO officers attempted to arrest Baffour Awuah at the Accra High Court. EOCO later went to court for formal authority to arrest him and search for documents relevant to its investigation.
On September 30, the High Court granted EOCO the warrant and directed that the arrest be executed through the Speaker of Parliament.
Baffour Awuah subsequently reported himself to EOCO on October 1 with his lawyer Samuel Atta Kyea. Investigators later accompanied him to his former law firm and residence to execute search warrants.
Kutor, however, maintained that he has consistently supported involving the Speaker when an MP is to be arrested.
“With the Sosu episode, I have said that when it comes to MPs, consult the Speaker. I have said that. I mean, and I’ll be consistent,” he said.
He therefore distinguished between the procedure that should be followed when dealing with MPs and the broader question of whether EOCO had the power to investigate and seek Baffour Awuah’s arrest.
“We must get the facts clear. We must get the facts very, very clear,” Kutor said.
