The Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Haruna Mohammed, has accused the government of President John Dramani Mahama of undermining the gains made following the repeal of Ghana’s criminal libel law.
Speaking in an interview on Joy FM’s Top Story, Mr Mohammed argued that while the repeal of the law was intended to strengthen free speech and deepen democratic governance, recent developments of political arrests suggest those gains are being eroded.
“The repeal of the criminal libel law has not been sustained under the current leadership,” he stated, pointing to what he described as increasing cases of intimidation and politically motivated arrests.
His comments come on the back of a demonstration by the NPP in Sunyani in the Bono Region, where party supporters took to the streets to protest what they claim is a growing clampdown on freedom of expression.
Mr. Mohammed maintained that Ghana’s 1992 Constitution guarantees both rights and responsibilities for citizens and state institutions, stressing that the protection of free speech is essential to sustaining the country’s democracy.
“We are not going to sit and observe in silence while freedom of speech is intimidated,” he said, adding that the party’s actions are within its constitutional rights.
He further alleged that some state agencies are exceeding their mandate, leading to arrests that he claims are “rooted in political persecution, often without any conclusive outcomes.”
The criminal libel law, repealed in 2001, was widely seen as a major step toward enhancing press freedom in Ghana. However, the NPP insists that recent actions by authorities threaten to reverse those gains.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com
