The security services in Ghana have been described as the “biggest abusers” of the rights and privileges of people.
A legal practitioner and lecturer at the law faculty of the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Justice Abdulai, has accused the various security agencies of not adhering to certain human right provisions in the constitution especially in times of arrest.
His comments come on the back of the arrest of Dennis Edward Aboagye, also known as ‘Miracles’, an aide to Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), by the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).
Miracles was picked up at the Accra International Airport on Saturday night, July 11, 2026, while returning from the US. He was kept in custody, where members of the NPP besieged the premises of EOCO, demanding his release.
Commenting on the development, Abdulai indicated that security agencies over the years have abused the rights of people without recourse to the law.
“Our security agencies, we already know, they are the biggest abusers of our constitutional rights and privileges,” he stated while commenting on the issue on Ghana Tonight on TV3 on Monday, July 13, 2026.
According to Abdulai, the security agencies “do not respect the 48-hour rule, they do not respect your rights when being arrested, they do not respect your right to be admitted to bail without taking money and beating you up, torturing you in a lot of ways.”
He stressed that treating people under arrest in ways that trample on their fundamental human rights is an affront to democracy. Justice Abdulai described the actions of the agencies as akin to that of a military rule.
“These are continuous matters we keep alerting our security agencies to be mindful of and that we are no longer under military regime. So long as we are under democratic dispensation, rights and privileges as enshrined in our constitutions and other laws must always be respected.
“It does appear that our security agencies, generally, have not come to terms with this and they still operate as though they still live under stone age and they do the same things they used to do under military regimes,” he stated.
Dennis Edward ‘Miracles’ Aboagye, an aide to the New Patriotic Party’s flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, was arrested by EOCO at the Accra International Airport upon his return from abroad.
According to EOCO, the arrest is linked to alleged financial and procurement-related irregularities involving about GH¢55 million during his tenure as Executive Secretary of the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Decentralisation (IMCCOD).
He was arrested alongside the Secretariat’s former accountant, Gerald Appiah, as part of ongoing investigations into the alleged irregularities.
He has since been granted a GH¢50 million bail with three sureties, two of which must be justified with properties of equivalent value.
This has drawn criticism from the NPP, with the party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, cautioning the government against what he described as the “Rambo-style” arrest of opposition figures.
EOCO has stated that Mr Appiah has voluntarily begun refunding some of the funds connected to the alleged offences, but noted that the recoveries do not conclude the investigations or absolve any suspect of criminal liability.
The Office assured the public that it would continue to conduct the investigations professionally, impartially and within the law while respecting the constitutional rights of all persons under investigation. It added that further updates on the case would be provided as and when appropriate.
EOCO cites fraud, money laundering among reasons for Miracle Aboagye’s arrest
