Convener for civil advocacy group Democracy Hub Oliver Barker-Vormawor has emphasised he is not repentant over entering a police vehicle, turning off the ignition and taking the key away. 

"I completely say, I'd do it again, and I'll do it tomorrow," he said.

"When I was looking at the vehicle, a number of thoughts were going through my head: 'Do I drive it away, or just take the key away?'," he added.

He spoke on Starr FM's Starr Chat with Bola Ray. 

"Let's be clear that we saw significant police misconduct that day," Barker-Vormawor recalled September 22, 2024, during the Democracy Hub-led anti-illegal mining (galamsey) protest at the 37 intersection, Accra.

He called the police dropping the theft charge against him "cynical and disappointing". However, he said it was illustrative of his point that there was no merit to the charge in the first place, when it is understood in context. This, he asserted, must be a teachable moment nationally. 

"In that moment, I was concerned about the lives of individuals the police tow truck was running over. That was my biggest concern - one of the individuals had even fallen on the tow truck," he explained his actions. 

He said when he assessed the situation, and recognising "to save the lives of protesters was our chief pride when we step out to protest," he went into the police vehicle turned off the ignition and took the keys away. 

Read: Democracy Hub anti-galamsey protest: Oliver Baker-Vormawor finally granted ¢20k bail

Ghanaians "have been raised with the idea that we must fear this institution even when they are acting in violation of your rights," he decried.

Meanwhile, the law says, "Nobody is entitled to subject you to either unlawful arrest or unlawful seizure of property," he added.

The lawyer and activist said when he was arrested on September 22, 2024, it was after he "demobilised the police vehicle" when "the police attempted to [unlawfully] seize private property".

He was happy that his saga with the police in court would educate the citizenry on "the extent of our right to resistance," while it uncovers the varied "ways in which we suffer abuse from the police".

Read: Barker-Vormawor still in police custody since he's failed to satisfy bail conditions – Police

Oliver Barker-Vormawor underscored he operated from a perspective of safeguarding “dignity”. In so doing, he challenges the status quo which he captured this way: “We must always be deferential to abuse, no matter how it happens. We must accept it, it’s the Ghanaian way of life.” For him, in seeking the necessary change, he is willing to put anything, including his freedom and life, on the line.