The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) is gravely alarmed over the escalating pattern of state-backed arrests and detentions of bloggers and activists under the guise of combating “false news.”
The arrest of Democracy Hub activist Wendell Nana Yaw Yeboah, the latest in the litany of such incidents, signals a dangerous retrogression in Ghana’s democratic credentials, effectively resurrecting the repressive logic of the repealed Criminal Libel Law.
The “Criminalisation” of Speech
The MFWA notes with deep concern that the Ghana Police Service, National Security, and other state security apparatus are increasingly being deployed as a tool for settling reputational disputes involving public officials, bypassing established civil remedies in favour of custodial intimidation.
- The Case of Wendell Nana Yaw Yeboah: On November 26, 2025, the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) arrested Yeboah following a petition by the “Ashanti Democrats” on behalf of three Regional Ministers (Ashanti, Eastern, and Western). Yeboah had allegedly accused these ministers of complicity in galamsey (illegal mining) operations. Yeboah issued a formal retraction and apology on November 18, admitting the claims were unsubstantiated.
- The Case of Samuel Amadotor: On November 20, 2025, blogger Samuel Amadotor was arrested and detained following a complaint by Okatakyie Boakye Danquah Ababio II, a former Board Chairman of the National Communications Authority (NCA). Amadotor is accused of “publication of false news”.
- The Case of Kwame Baffoe (Abronye DC): On September 8, 2025, Kwame Baffoe, Bono Regional Chairman of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), was arrested by the Ghana Police Service on charges of “offensive conduct conducive to breach of the peace” and “publication of false news.” His arrest followed questioning by the Criminal Investigations Department after he criticised the Inspector General of Police.
- The Case of Akyemkwaa Nana Kofi Asare: On August 12, 2025, Akyemkwaa Nana Kofi Asare, a Wontumi TV presenter, was abducted in Ejisu Krapa, Ashanti Region, by unidentified armed men following his on-air claims linking President John Mahama to a recent fatal military helicopter crash. The journalist was later found at the Police Headquarters in Accra.
- The Case of Fante Comedy and Akosua Jollof: On August 12, 2025, TikTok content creators Prince Ofori and Yayra Abiwu, popularly known as Fante Comedy and Akosua Jollof respectively, were arrested by the Ghana Police Service. The arrest followed a live TikTok session on August 11, during which remarks were made suggesting that the President and a government official should have been among the casualties of the helicopter crash.
- The Case of Alfred Ababio Kumi: On May 17, 2025, armed National Security operatives arrested Kumi, a former parliamentary aspirant and opposition party activist, following allegations he made on social media regarding purported judicial misconduct. Kumi had claimed that three judges investigating a petition to remove then Chief Justice, Gertrude Torkornoo, met with the petitioner’s lawyer to discuss the case. The state charged him on May 23, 2025, with publication of false news.
The Twin Laws Surviving the Repealed Criminal Libel Law
The above chronicled arrests have been effected using Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and Section 76 of the Electronic Communications Act (Act 775). Legal analysts and civil society coalitions have rightly identified these statutes as the “Twin Laws” surviving the repealed criminal libel and seditious provisions in Ghana’s law. The “fear and panic” provision of Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) remains a vestige of the colonial era designed to suppress dissent rather than protect public peace. For Section 76 of the Electronic Communications Act (Act 775), while the state argues that this provision is necessary to prevent misinformation its application over the years has tended to be enforced arbitrarily to shield public officials and the powerful.
Unfortunately, while the Misinformation, Disinformation, Hate Speech and Publication of Other Information (MDHI) Bill, 2025 introduced by the current government admirably promises to repeal the aforementioned “twin laws,” the MDHI Bill itself introduces provisions that effectively replicate the laws it seeks to repeal. For example, as highlighted in MFWA’s concerns regarding the proposed Misinformation, Disinformation, Hate Speech and Publication of Other Information (MDHI) Bill, 2025, the threshold regarding “hate speech” is so elastic that it could potentially encompass any speech that is merely embarrassing or politically inconvenient to those in power, such as the cases detailed above.
A Betrayal of Democratic Gains
It is deeply disappointing that this pattern of criminalising speech has once again reared its head despite our strong advocacy against it under the previous administration. The much vaunted 2001 repeal of the Criminal Libel Law was meant to bury the practice of criminalising speech and reverse the culture of silence which had stifled democratic participation in government. Today, the current administration’s first-resort reliance on high handed deployments of National Security operatives and the Police to arrest and detain critics represent a gravedigging betrayal of that freedom of expression legacy.
Civil Remedies are Sufficient
While the MFWA does not by this statement endorse or attempt to justify the comments made in the cited cases, the appropriate avenue for addressing defamation and reputational injury, which include the use of rejoinders, arbitration by the National Media Commission or civil defamation suits, should remain the remedies available to all. Criminal prosecution, which threatens the liberty of the citizen, is a disproportionate tool that chills free speech, discourages whistleblowing on critical issues, and shrinks the civic space. Criminal prosecution for speech offences also violates many international human rights frameworks that Ghana has signed onto, including the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights.
Call to Action
In light of these developments, the MFWA calls for the following:
- Dropping of Criminal Charges: Authorities must immediately drop the criminal charges against all victims and the Ghana Police Service must ensure those currently in their custody are afforded their full constitutional rights. We also caution against the use of detention as a punitive measure prior to any conviction.
- Judicial Restraint: We call on the judiciary to prioritise non-custodial sentences for speech related offenses.
- Legislative Reform: The government must urgently review and repeal Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act and Section 76 of the Electronic Communications Act. Until these twin laws are completely removed from our statute books, the ghost of the criminal libel law will continue to haunt Ghana’s democracy.
- Review of MDHI Bill: We call for a revision of problematic provisions of the MDHI Bill, 2025 as listed in our submission to the Ministry. Any new legislation must reinforce civil, rather than criminal, pathways for resolving speech-related disputes and must not reintroduce the repressive elements of the past.
Ghana’s reputation as a beacon of media freedom in Africa is under threat. The nation cannot claim to be a champion of free expression while arbitrary arrests exist for speech offenses.
