Oliver Barker-Vormawor eventually receiving medical treatment at Police Hospital

After denying him medical attention several hours following his detention for protesting, the police have eventually sent Oliver Barker-Vormawor, Convenor of the Democracy Hub, for medical treatment and he is on admission at the Police Hospital.

When Barker-Vormawor complained of ill health when he was detained after handing himself over to the police, family sources said he was refused medical attention, and a private medical officer was called to attend to him, but the police didn’t grant the medical officer access to him until after several hours when his condition was deteriorating.

The police issued a news brief, simply saying he was transferred for treatment following complaints of ill health on Tuesday. According to the brief, after assessing his condition doctors decided to admit him for treatment.

Even though the police brief claims that the suspect was not denied medical attention during the process, relations of Barker-Vormawor say that was not the case.

Barker-Vormawor, has been leading a protest last weekend calling on the authorities to act to end illegal mining, known as galamsey in the country. Galamsey which is happening in a number of communities in the country is polluting water bodies and destroying farmlands.

In a related development, a journalist, Akwesi Addo was seen on a Metro TV report lamenting the fact that his sister who is asthmatic and suffers from diabetes, and glaucoma, who was also arrested during the protest has been denied medical care, and no family member has been allowed to see her. According to Addo, he only saw his sister when she was presented in court.

He said his sister, whose name he gave as Priscila wasn’t part of the protest. “She was only streaming the protest on her social media handle when she was arrested,” he said.

By Emmanuel K Dogbevi