The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) has condemned the arrest and remand of its Bono Regional Chairman, Kwame Baffoe, describing the process as a violation of constitutional protections and a threat to free expression.
Deputy Minority Leader Patricia Appiagyei said the arrest breached Article 14 of Ghana’s Constitution, which guarantees personal liberty.
“We are looking at the constitutional provision that no person shall be deprived of his liberty except under clearly defined circumstances,” she said on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Monday (18 May), arguing that the case did not meet that threshold.
Appiagyei maintained that Baffoe’s comments amounted to criticism rather than criminal conduct, warning against what she described as the criminalisation of dissent.
“We are not encouraging insults, but every citizen has the right to criticise a system,” she said.
She also questioned the legal basis for Baffoe’s detention, alleging that as of close of business on Friday, no formal documentation had been produced to justify the remand.
According to her, the justification that the accused could continue making public comments if granted bail was insufficient grounds for detention.
“That is persecution, not prosecution,” she said.
The opposition has further raised concerns about the potential use of legal provisions to indirectly reintroduce criminal libel, which was repealed in Ghana more than two decades ago.
Source: asaaseradio.com
