KKD rape saga: African Regent Hotel can we trust you?

• Posted on January 2, 2015January 2, 2015
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Working in a hotel for 4 years, one of the things I learnt was that, hotel rooms are for privacy. I recall when during one of my night shifts, a red light on the smoke alarm which was faulty started blinking. The guest in that room hurriedly came to me at the reception and was very angry, shouting on top of his hoarse voice “do you have CCTV cameras in hotel rooms? What kind of hotel is this? Or is it because it is owned by a Journalist so you people use it to track your reports? What kind of stupidity is this?”

Surprised as I was, I followed him to the room to verify since I did not even know that there were such cameras in the hotel rooms. I only knew that the CCTV cameras were at the corridors of the hotel and not in the rooms so upon seeing it, I told the guest that was a smoke alarm and not a CCTV camera; the man sighed and we still laugh over this today.

Even though in legal issues, Lawyers go beyond any means to free their client, but this has been to the defamation of the hotel involved in the Kwasi Kyei Darkwah (KKD) rape issue, African Regent Hotel (Hotel de waa or Kufour Hotel). There is some footage from the CCTV camera of the hotel detailing the incident. According to reports by starrfmonline, there were two sex positions involved in the KKD rape saga.

On the charge sheet, KKD allegedly raped her in the bathroom of the suite. So the question that comes into the minds of the discerning Ghanaian is that, are there CCTV cameras in the hotel rooms as well which showed that the two had 2 sex positions? What will be the interest of the hotel to install such cameras there? Even though this has helped KKD’s legal team but to patrons of the hotel, what they will forever be reminded is that, there is no privacy at the said hotel.

A motion on notice filed by KKD’s Lawyers on Wednesday December 31, 2014, said: “The complainant was captured by CCTV footage in the hotel romantically kissing the accused person before the alleged non-consensual sexual incident, and most importantly, after the alleged rape was said to have occurred, the footage shows the accused and the complainant walking together from the hotel suite and through the hotel lobby in much the same manner as they entered the hotel suite.”

African Regent Hotel, some of us need explanation and clarification as to where your cameras are installed and if we can trust you.

Waiting!

Author: Nana Kwesi Coomson (www.233times.net)