Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the 2028 elections, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has called for the release of a Techiman-based nurse and mother of three, Salomey Bafor Awiti, who has been remanded for two weeks over allegations of abetting the publication of false news.
Salomey was alleged to be linked to the anonymous “Ghana Jollof” social media account.
A London-based Ghanaian nurse, Barbara Asantewaa Kodua, was later declared wanted after being identified as the alleged operator of the “Ghana Jollof” social media account.
In a Facebook post on Friday, September 18, Dr Bawumia condemned her arrest and expressed concern over reports that Awiti was picked up in the middle of the night by national intelligence officers and subsequently remanded.
He described the development as worrying and cautioned against what he said could amount to an infringement on citizens’ right to free speech.
“This is not the Ghana we want to build,” Dr Bawumia said.
He added that under his Presidency, intelligence agencies will not be reduced to pursuing citizens over insults directed at the President or other public figures.
“I can assure Ghanaians that when given the opportunity, our intelligence agencies will not be reduced to chasing citizens for insulting the President or anyone else,” Bawumia wrote.
The former Vice President said he has consistently opposed a politics of insults and urged political actors and citizens to conduct themselves with decorum.
“I have always disavowed a politics of insults and will remind all in the political space of the need to be decorous. The ideas we need to transform our nation won’t come from insults,” he said.
However, Dr Bawumia stressed that opposition to insulting or abusive speech should not result in restrictions on legitimate free expression.
He urged the government to respect the constitutional right to free speech, arguing that restrictions on the right could undermine Ghana’s democratic development.
“But I also remind the NDC government that any infringement on the right to free speech pushes our democracy backwards. Free speech, as unpalatable as it may be sometimes, is the foundation of our democracy,” he said.
Dr Bawumia further raised concerns about what he described as the selective application of the law, claiming that some citizens are allowed to make insulting comments without facing consequences while others are arrested and prosecuted depending on the target of their comments.
“Even more worrying is the government’s continuous selective application of our laws. Some citizens can insult and walk freely and others are jailed because the government doesn’t like the target of their insults,” he stated.
He subsequently called for the release of Awiti and others who, according to him, have been similarly charged and detained.
“Please release Salomey Bafor Awiti and others who have been similarly charged and jailed,” Dr Bawumia said.
He concluded his post with a call for Ghanaians to uphold democratic freedoms and resist what he described as “oppressors’ rule.”
