Civil society advocate Oliver Barker-Vormawor, a lawyer, activist and one of the leaders of the anti-corruption group Democracy Hub, has criticised the continued detention of a 24-year-old activist, Wendell, describing the development as an abuse of power against a young citizen speaking out on illegal mining.
In a detailed statement, Barker-Vormawor recounted the sequence of events. “Wendell was arrested and detained for 17 days for protesting Galamsey last year,” he wrote. “Today he is in custody, because in a long interview talking about Galamsey, he mentioned 3 Regional Ministers from Galamsey prone regions as persons implicated in Galamsey.”
He said Wendell’s comment reflected a broader accountability principle. “Every leader who watches Galamsey to happen is himself guilty of Galamsey. Ɔpanyin a ɔhwɛ ma mmɔfra we nanka, sɛ yɛbu nanka-wɛfuo a, ɔka ho,” he quoted, adding, “A valid view, if you ask me.”
Barker-Vormawor explained that Democracy Hub later apologised because “people missed the nuance of that view.” Wendell also issued an apology within hours, and he personally contacted two of the Ministers involved. “I personally called the Ashanti Regional Minister; and the Eastern Regional Ministers and offered our apologies on his behalf and that of Democracy Hub. The only reason I didn’t call the Western Regional Minister was because I couldn’t find his contact.”
He argued that despite these efforts, authorities insisted on punishing Wendell. “But no that’s not repentance enough. We must show him where power lies. He should bring his evidence; else he hangs. So he sits in jail; because our appetite for revenge, emboldened by power must not rest till a pound of flesh is exacted.”
He also criticised the partisan reactions that followed. “All day yesterday, I have seen think pieces from various persons who speak for the opposition jubilate widely. For them, Democracy Hub caused the defeat of their Government, so this is our just reward.” He added that some figures within the governing party had also stoked attacks, saying some believed the group “need to be shown where power lies and cut to size.”
Barker-Vormawor emphasised that at the centre of the matter is a young activist punished despite apologising. “In all this, a 24-year-old sits in jail. Twice now for Galamsey. His apology insufficient. It is those who make the omelette that break the egg.”
He questioned the purpose of the continued detention. “At some point we must decide whether our politics still has room for grace. If a young man apologises, if he retracts his words, if those of us who lead him take responsibility and make amends, then the country must ask itself what the continued punishment is meant to teach.”
He warned that punitive displays of authority undermine justice. “Because when the law stops being corrective and becomes performative, it stops protecting society and begins entertaining its darkest instincts. In that theatre, nobody learns, nobody heals, and nobody grows.”
He added that the wider problem is a political culture that punishes whistleblowers. “Ghana cannot claim to be outraged by Galamsey while locking up the very citizens who summon the courage to speak about it, however imperfectly.” He argued that the country cannot build a better future “while treating every moment of vulnerability as a chance for partisan victory laps.”
He stressed that Ghana’s democracy must protect its truth-tellers. “If our democracy means anything, it must mean that a 24-year-old who fights for rivers he may never personally profit from is not abandoned when the winds shift.”
According to him, societies that fail to defend such citizens damage themselves. “A society that refuses to protect its truth-tellers will eventually find that it has broken far more than eggs; it will have broken its future.”
He ended with a message directed at those pushing for Wendell’s punishment. “Democracy Hub will be fine. I can tell you that much. Just let us know when you are done doing your worst. Shalom!”
