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The Ghana Police Service has announced that investigations have been initiated into the bloody clash between its officers and members of some pressure groups on Wednesday.

According to the police, the investigations would look into the allegations by members of the Let My Vote Count Movement (LMVC), Alliance For Accountable Governance (AFAG) and Movement for Change (MC) that the police used excessive and brutal force on them.

Speaking on Asempa FM Thursday, the head of Public Relations at the Criminal Investigations Department, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Joseph Benefo Darkwa said the Police Service would not shield any of its members implicated in the chaos. Pressure groups, LMVC, AFAG and MC staged a demonstration on Wednesday to impress on the Electoral Commission (EC) to compile a new voters’ register.

The protest turned chaotic when some members of the group veered off the approved route, forcing the police to fire tear gas and use hot water to disperse the crowd. Some of the demonstrators were also whipped with canes.

About 29 members of the group, including a leading member of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, were arrested in the process.

Explaining why police had to use hot water and teargas, ASP Benefo Darkwa said “it is not the wish of the police to apply force on our fellow brothers but we also have a duty to perform.” Nonetheless, he said the investigations would be done swiftly and the findings would be made known to the public.