By News Desk
Her only crime was going to the Tema Passport office to apply for a renewal of her expired passport.
A citizen identified as Maryam Sulaiman, has petitioned the Inspector General, COP Dr. George Dampare, about her ordeal in the hands of one Immigration officer stationed at the Tema Passport office, in Accra.
Read the full unedited sordid details of Maryam Sulaiman’s petition below:
THE INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE, MR. GEORGE AKUFFO DAMPARE, ACCRA-GHANA.
Dear Sir,
REQUEST FOR A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS INTO AN ASSAULT ON MY PERSON
- My name is Maryam Sulaiman, a Ghanaian citizen residing in Tse Addo, Accra. I am writing officially to your office to report an incident of physical assault on my person by one Immigration officer stationed at the Tema Passport office.
- On Wednesday, February 16, 2022, I went to the Tema Passport office to apply for a renewal of my expired passport.
- Some minutes into the vetting process, some two officers began raising doubt about nationality as a Ghanaian merely on account of my inability to speak any local Ghanaian dialect, aside English and Hausa which I was raised with.
- Not any long thereafter, one of them asked me to call my parents ostensibly for them to confirm if I am a Ghanaian. I response to that request, I mentioned that I was old enough to handle issues of that nature on my own.
- The officer got angry and threw my documents aside and moved on to attend to other applicants. I picked up the documents and rose to leave since it was evident from their action that I was never going to get my application processed.
- When I got to the main road close to the passport office, I heard a voice calling me from behind. It was the officer in charge of vetting.
- In an apparently calm manner, he asked me to come back. In my mind, I thought he had reconsidered his decision. So, out of respect and hope to have my application for renewal processed, I heeded and returned to the premises.
20th February, 2022
- I was taken to a man whose name I would later learn as Dela, for further interrogation. This was after the initial long interrogation. In the end, both the first and second interrogation lasted for about three hours.
- From that point, I began feeling worn out. I was hungry, generally exhausted. I needed to eat earlier and take my anti-depressant pills at 12pm but I could not because of how the whole process was dragged.
- Eventually, and arrogating to themselves the power of the court, they concluded that I am not a Ghanaian and started subtly coercing me to confess. They said even the old, expired passport, was acquired illegally and my parents having possessing passports does not have any bearing on my qualification and eligibility.
- I asked them if they genuinely believe their claims against me were true, they should either hand me over to the police for me to be processed and arraigned in line with due process and as per law dictated, sign my application for passport renewal, if they would, or they should let me go.
- I reminded them that holding me there for that long without any formal charges against me was in violation of my rights, stood up and headed out. At the main entrance to the premises, some officers surrounded me and the boss held me and forcibly dragged me back to his office.
- In the office, he asked to me to sit, but I refused. He seized my hand bag, old passport, the passport renewal application forms and my mobile phone.
- I snatched my phone from him and dialed the number of the person who signed my forms as witness, to inform him of the situation I had found myself in.
- While making the call, Dela got furious and attempted taking the phone from me but I put it inside my brazier. He pounced on me and tried putting his hand inside my brazier to get the phone and I attempted biting his hand in self-defense.
- Due to his unsuccessful attempt at getting the phone, he started hitting me and kicking me till I fell and sat on the ground, helplessly. He held my two hands in a
manner that restrained me and asked some female officers to search and retrieve the phone from my brazier.
- After releasing me, I ran out of the office in an attempt to escape further assault from him. He chased me outside, pushed me to the ground and held one of my legs and attempted dragging me on the floor back into his office.
- When I resisted, he stripped off my scarf from my head and removed my shoes and took them to his office. It is worth noting that all of this happened in the full glare of the people on the premises at the time. I left all the seized items to them and ran out barefooted and without my scarf covering my hair.
- Dear Sir, I have been emotionally and psychologically traumatized since the incident happened. I have since been living with body pains too. For days, I could barely move my left hand due to pains in my wrist. I am completely distressed and it got worse by the hour due to flashes I keep getting in my mind of the incident.
- My right to self-dignity as a citizen has been flagrantly violated, in grave offense to the provisions under Article 15(1) (2) (a) (b) of the 1992 Constitution.
- The outfit which you head is there to offer protection to all citizens, a “group” which I belong as a Ghanaian. Too often, we are told and constantly reminded that the police is our friend. I believe you and your personnel are our friends, and have no doubt in your inclination to ensuring that justice is done to us – citizens.
- It is on the back of my hope in the police service that I write to your office to request that the assault on me is investigated and the officer who physically assaulted me and those who assisted him are brought to book in accordance with law.
- And because the incident has been circulated widely on social media, I believe if action is taken by you, it will help greatly help the efforts your administration is making to restore the lost hope and confidence of the citizenry in the police.
- I count on your kindest consideration. Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
… signed…
Maryam Sulaiman
Cc:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Office of the National Chief Imam
