A criminologist and lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology's (KNUST) Department of Sociology has remarked that the country's youth's escalating mob and aggressive mindset is concerning.
Young people, according to Dr. Jones Opoku-Ware, have a lot of unreleased aggressiveness that is particularly on display during rallies and demonstrations.
He cautioned that if Ghanaians continue to have aggressive and mistrustful attitudes against the Police, the law enforcement will react, referring to previous skirmishes between demonstrators and the Police.
According to a study from the University of Ghana, the high rates of juvenile crime and violence are related to Ghana's high young unemployment rate.
The pace of migration from rural to urban areas is also rising, he continued.
Arise Ghana organised a demonstration on Tuesday, and the police in Accra deployed tear gas, rubber bullets, and water cannons to disperse the unruly throng.
"Honestly, I'm baffled as to why people blame the Police for the unrest during the rally. Do you expect a Police officer to stay motionless or turn a blind eye if you hurl stones at them with the intent to damage them?
Dr. Opoku-Ware stated during an interview with David Akuetteh on Luv FM's Luv In the Morning that although rallies and demonstrations are protected under Ghana's constitution as exercising one's right to free speech, they have evolved into platforms for dissent and violence.
"A major issue is that most protests in Ghana have political undertones; as a result, these rallies frequently turn violent as their leaders employ violence as a means of communication.
"The leaders are often powerful individuals who employ legal manoeuvres to escape consequences, shifting blame to others on the ground."
Dr. Opoku-Ware said that during significant protests, crowd analysis and control are of the highest significance.
According to him, the proper police reaction should include delivering a megaphone warning at least four times, setting up tactical formations, and, if required, utilising restraints other than lethal force.
On Tuesday, there was a lot of provocation as the protesters pushed the police and threw stones at them. I'll give the police a break on this one since they employed non-lethal tactics and showed surprising restraint," he continued.
In the meanwhile, he wants the Police to start using drones to spot troublemakers in the crowd rather than launching an offensive on all protesters.
The frequency of injuries and fatalities in these scenarios is anticipated to be greatly reduced by the use of drones. I am aware that employing drones may not be the simplest thing for our government to do, but its significance right now is enormous.
Dr. Opoku-Ware also cautioned against the risks posed by protest looters.