The University of Ghana’s Professor Ransford Gyampo, has described as “nation wreckers”, persons who “cheer on those who insult, and cheaply tell victims to go to court.”
He says a democracy is not built on insults, despite having freedom of speech as a core tenet.
The Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana’s comments stem from recent arrests of some persons whom according to security agencies have used hate speech and insults on others, especially government officials and political opponents, which they say have the propensity to destabilise the peace in the country.
The arrests, notably amongst them being the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Bono Regional Chairman, Kwame Baffoe Agyei, a.k.a. Abronye, and others, which the party has bemoaned, and described as political intimidation of its members, it says, is a direct attempt to silence them from criticising the government.
Leadership of the NPP on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, petitioned the diplomatic corp on the development, urging them to monitor the country’s human rights situation which they said are being violated.
They have called for persons who feel defamed with comments of others to seek redress at the courts, rather than the arrests which they allege the Government is using to silence dissenting opinions.
Reacting to the development, Prof. Gyampo, in a post on his Facebook page on Saturday, May 23, 2026, said those insulting people are not the problem, but rather, the ones urging them on and telling victims to seek redress in court.
According to him, “sometimes, those who insult and are reckless in their speech, aren’t even the problem. Those who won’t insult but cheer on those who insult, and cheaply tell victims to go to court, are the ones who are nation wreckers.”
He added that defamation suits may have its own repercussions if care is not taken.
“If we don’t take care, one day, by the time the court decides on a defamatory suit, the whole nation would have been already engulfed in something else I can never mention or wish for our dear country Ghana.”
Ghana’s democracy, he advised, is still in its formative stages and must be guarded against collapse.
He admonished those preaching for victims of verbal abuse to go to court to rather discourage the practice in the first place, adding that the license for freedom of speech is a not a ticket to engage in hate speech.
“Let us be careful as a people, for we are merely a transitional democracy, having climbed only one step the ladder of democratic progression from authoritarianism. We must guard against implosion and democratic relapse.
“We must speak freely but freedom of speech is not coterminous recklessness, buffoonery and foolish talk. It is also nation wrecking to encourage people to do these and tell victims to go to court. Democratically reasonable people would insist that, we must not encourage the offense in the first place.”
Find below the full statement issued on his Facebook wall:
