The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has condemned the arrest and detention of its Bono Regional Chairman, Kwame Baffoe, popularly known as Abronye, by the police for allegedly insulting the Inspector General of Police (IGP), COP Christian Tetteh Yohunu.
In a statement signed by the party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, the NPP described the development as “the latest installment of a growing pattern of politically motivated intimidation and harassment” targeted at its members by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.
“It is rather unfortunate that eight months into the administration of H.E. John Dramani Mahama, the government appears to have completely lost focus,” the statement read.
“Instead of prioritizing security challenges in places like Bawku, Nkwanta, and Gbeniyiri, where clashes have claimed over 32 lives and displaced more than 50,000 Ghanaians, state security is being weaponised to silence dissenting voices.”
The NPP accused the government of reviving “the dreaded culture of silence” that the country moved away from after the repeal of the Criminal and Seditious Libel Law in 2001. The party stressed that under current laws, individuals who feel defamed, including the IGP, should pursue civil remedies through defamation suits rather than resorting to criminal prosecution.
“The law, they say, is the law, and we expect the IGP to know better. You don’t weaponise and abuse your office to settle personal scores with the very people you are supposed to protect. Criminalising speech has no place in a democracy,” the statement added.
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