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Why Arrest Wisa Gried And Leave Ebony?: An Exposure Of The Sheer Inconsistency And Hypocrisy In Ghana

By Abdallah Matin
Opinion Why Arrest Wisa Gried And Leave Ebony?: An Exposure Of The Sheer Inconsistency And Hypocrisy In Ghana
DEC 4, 2017 LISTEN

Are we a self-acclaimed modern nation that does not accord to the spirit of equality before the law enshrined in Article 17 of the Fourth Republican Constitution?

It is becoming palpable and indeed tangible that Ghana is becoming intoxicated by the tranquilizing drug of selective application of the laws in our statue books.

The application of the law today is tied to the whims and caprices of media attention and not what the law dictates prosecuting authority to do.

A case which lacks media focus least gets its day in the law courts. Are we going to operate our justice system on the wheels of the media rather than the law?

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I am not a showbiz freak. My knack for events in the entertainment industry is next to nothing.

I, however, abhor in no uncertain terms showbiz events which underscore a seeming apartheid administration of lawful punitive actions against show businesspersons in the country.

I do detest these because they go against the grain of my Ghanaian values.

Musician Wisa Gried of “Ekiki Me” fame was arrested, arraigned before court and was granted GHc8,000 bail with one surety for allegedly showing his genitals on stage during a performance at Citi FM’s “Decemba to Rememba concert in 2015.

And pathetically as it stands, though Wisa Gried continue to frequent the courts justice is yet to prevail.

The last time I checked, Wisa was in court on September 27, 2017 where he lamented bitterly about how the court was dilly-dallying the case.

However, the disappointment with the justice system is how the law is selective in many others.

May be the media on which our justice system is unfortunately ran did not hype those instances.

On Saturday, November 18, 2017 Ebony performed at the 4syte TV Music Video Awards and her apparel got everyone talking for the indecent public exposure, same reason for which Wisa Greid was arrested and arraigned before the court.

The dancehall act was photographed wearing a ‘swimsuit like’ evening dress with a part clearly exposing her butts and some other vitals.

Section 296, Sub-section 25 of the Criminal Act of 1960 and section 278 of criminal offences act of 1960 frown upon indecent exposure and whoever violates these laws faces the consequences as stipulated in the Acts that flow from the Constitution of Ghana.

Wisa Greid and Ebony both fell foul of our codes of conduct in our law books.

To say the least, we are treating them very differently. Do they deserve equal or similar treatment?

Why strike Wisa with a sledgehammer and Ebony with praises for an act of the same shade?

These are weighty questions but they are the tip of the ice-berg. Much about the same time, Christabel Ekeh and Rashida Black broadcast their nudities on social media and near-nothing happened.

The latter was however invited by the Berekum Police for questioning and the case met its natural death there. Our gender activist can perhaps push for gender equity in our justice delivery system too.

Are all crimes not crimes? Are all citizens not citizens? Is the Criminal and Offences Act for real? We can repeal it if it has over stayed its welcome in today's world and not allow it sitting on our law books and biting selectively.

Proverbs 28:4 puts it more bluntly that “Those who refuse to obey the law promote evil. Those who obey the law oppose evil.”

Let us collectively abandon Adhocracy, Hypocrisy And Inconsistency and embrace a justice delivery system, truly under "Freedom and Justice " that serve the same tot of justice to Wisa Greid, Ebony, Rashida Black, Christabel Ekeh and of course to you and me.

As the wags will put it, "A system which cannot deliver equal justice to Wisa Greid and Ebony is that one too a fair justice delivery system?”

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