Political scientist Professor Ransford Gyampo has cautioned against attempts to trivialise insults in Ghana’s public discourse, arguing that defamatory language can fuel violence and, if left unchecked, contribute to national instability.
Professor Gyampo has taken a strong stance against the argument by some legal practitioners that insult is not a crime, warning that such assertions could have dangerous consequences for social cohesion.
Speaking on The KeyPoints on TV3, on August 29, Prof Gyampo said: “It is nation-wrecking for any lawyer to say insult is not a crime.”
According to him, Ghana’s political climate has increasingly become accommodating of insults and abusive language, particularly in public discourse.
He expressed concern that some legal practitioners have appeared to trivialise insults by arguing that individuals offended by defamatory or insulting remarks could simply seek redress in court.
Prof Gyampo, however, questioned the effectiveness of such a remedy, noting that defamation cases can sometimes drag on for as long as eight years.
He argued that this raises an important question about when a person affected by damaging or offensive remarks can obtain meaningful relief through the legal process.
To illustrate the potential consequences of insults, Prof Gyampo reportedly cited an incident at a washing bay where a confrontation allegedly escalated from an exchange of insults into violence, resulting in the death of a person.
“Insults play on the emotional keyboard of people,” he said, warning that inflammatory language can provoke strong emotional reactions and, in extreme circumstances, trigger violence.
He cautioned that if the growing culture of insults is not addressed, it could contribute to social disorder and national instability.
Prof Gyampo also pointed to lessons from history, noting that societies that later descended into conflict and chaos had once enjoyed periods of peace and stability.
The political scientist’s comments add to the ongoing debate over the limits of free expression, the role of the law in regulating offensive speech and the growing use of insults in Ghana’s political and public discourse.
By Ishmael Oduro-Acheampong
