The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has condemned what it believes to be barbaric and brutal treatment of demonstrators who were protesting against the compilation of a new voter register ahead of 2020 polls.

The incident happened at the Parliament House on Thursday when the President arrived to deliver the 2020 State of the Nation Address (SONA).

“The cruel and barbaric manner in which the police used unjustifiable force in an attempt to suppress the constitutional rights of Ghanaians to protest peacefully, was totally disproportionate and unwarranted. This callous application of force resulted in physical injuries to some of the protesters including our Deputy General Secretary in charge of Operations, Mr Peter Boamah Otokunor,” the NDC said in a press statement.

According to the opposition political party, “it was the Director of Operations at the Police Regional Command, Supt. Kwasi Fori, who ordered the use of water cannons containing hot chemical solution on protestors.”

“This unprovoked cruelty were triggered by a concern raised by protesters when a busload of NPP supporters were allowed to enter the Parliament House without hindrance when protesters had been restricted for several hours from getting close to the entrance of the Parliament House. This clearly was an open display of political bias in favour of the NPP, a growing canker that must be resisted with might,” the party added.

Read the full press statement on the alleged brutalities below.