Kate Gyamfua Condemns Arrest of Women Over Free Speech
The National Women’s Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kate Gyamfua, has condemned the arrest of women for the exercise of free speech in the country.
According to Ms Gyamfua, while some speech may be very critical of the government and, in some instances, could sound insulting, it does not meet the threshold of criminal liability, calling for restraint in the numerous arrests, particularly those targeting women believed to be affiliated with the NPP.
She noted that plain insults in the body politic of Ghana could be condemned by all, and she indeed condemns them, but such insults should not lead to arrests, incarceration, heinous bail conditions and the remand of mothers.
Selective Enforcement
Speaking to the Media, Ms Gyamfua also accused the John Mahama administration of selective enforcement, arguing that offensive political speech had existed across different administrations and political traditions.
She noted that the politics of insults entered Ghana’s body politic when the Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, in 2007 referred to 17 presidential aspirants of the NPP as “17 thieves”.
She added that it got out of hand when Kevin Taylor made women, particularly Hajia Samira Bawumia, former Second Lady, women of the NPP, female celebrities and female media personnel the subjects of constant attacks, using all sorts of unprintable words against them, and yet was given heroic and VIP treatment by the John Mahama administration, which shepherded him through the VIP section of the Accra International Airport, gave him security protection and caused the Supreme Court to quash an arrest warrant against him out of time and even without his arrest.
Arrests
The comments by Ms Gyamfua follow the arrest and remand for two weeks of a 40-year-old mother of three and Senior Nursing Officer from Hansua in the Techiman Municipality, Salomey Awity Baffoe, over allegations that she operates the TikTok account “Ghana Jollof”, which has been critical of government officials.
Earlier this month, NPP social media activist Efya Royal was also arrested over allegations that she shared a post originally published by “Ghana Jollof”. In July, a 43-year-old TikToker, Camila Alhassan, was sentenced to one year in prison with hard labour for posting videos on TikTok.
These, among a series of arrests of women affiliated with the NPP, according to Ms Gyamfua, present the NDC government as a vindictive administration, particularly when the same administration pardoned the Montie Three, who threatened to rape former Chief Justice Georgina Wood.
Appeals
Ms Gyamfua said the situation was particularly concerning at a time when Ghana has its first female Vice-President. She consequently appealed to Vice-President Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang and First Lady Lordina Mahama to intervene on behalf of women detained or convicted over social media-related offences, including by supporting lawful processes for their release or pardon where applicable.
Meanwhile, the NPP National Women’s Organiser has disclosed that she has sent a team to visit the incarcerated Camila Alhassan and has since provided some support to her children.
