Major Slapped & Handcuffed For Failing To Stop For Mrs Kufuor

Saturday 7 December 2002, will forever be a black-letter day in the life of Major Allo of the Ghana Armed Forces.

That was the day he was subjected to the exercise of real terror, constitutional lawlessness style, for daring to cross the path of Her Royal Highness Mrs Theresa Kufuor, wife of He-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed President John Kufuor.

It all started when the innocent Major, dressed in mufti and driving his private car, arrived at the junction of the private residence of President John Kufuor around the Tetteh Quarshie Circle in Accra, popularly and euphemistically renamed by ingenuous and long-suffering Ghanaian “tro-tro” users as “HIPC Junction.”

Major Allo, together with other road users, were stopped the President’s police security “to make way for Mrs Kufuor” who was about to leave the house in her official convoy.

After the waiting period had lasted close to two hours, Major Alloh got down from his vehicle, politely introduced himself to the Presidential security as a serving military officer, and requested to be allowed to pass since it did not appear that Mrs Kufuor would be leaving the house soon

What happened was the Army Major’s worst nightmare comes true. First came two hefty slaps, followed by “What do you mean? Who do you think you are? Do you know you are breaching national security?”

Before the bewildered Major could say “Jack”, he found himself on the ground his hands in handcuffs. Next thing he knew, he was at “counter-back” at Police CID Headquarters where he was kept for well over six hours.

A clandestine call to the Army Headquarters however brought the intervention of the Military Police, who finally managed to “negotiate” the release of their officer. Major Alloh was not charged with any offence, and “Ghana Palaver is pursuing investigations into what has happened to the case, which could be described as “The Humiliation of a Ghana Army Officer.”