The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has expressed alarm over what it describes as an escalating pattern of state-backed arrests and detentions of bloggers, journalists, and activists under the pretext of combating “false news,” warning that the trend represents a disturbing backslide in Ghana’s democratic trajectory.
In a strongly worded statement, the organisation said the arrest of Democracy Hub activist Wendell Nana Yaw Yeboah marks “a dangerous retrogression in Ghana’s democratic credentials, effectively resurrecting the repressive logic of the repealed Criminal Libel Law.”
Growing Use of Security Agencies to Police Speech
The MFWA said it is “gravely alarmed” that the Ghana Police Service, National Security and other state agencies are increasingly being deployed “as a tool for settling reputational disputes involving public officials, bypassing established civil remedies in favour of custodial intimidation.”
Yeboah’s arrest on November 26, 2025, followed a petition by a group known as the “Ashanti Democrats” acting on behalf of three regional ministers. He had accused them of complicity in illegal mining but later retracted the claims, acknowledging they were unsubstantiated.
His case adds to several arrests this year. Blogger Samuel Amadotor was detained on November 20 after a complaint by former NCA Board Chairman Okatakyie Boakye Danquah Ababio II. Amadotor is accused of “publication of false news.”
Opposition politician Kwame Baffoe (Abronye DC) was arrested on September 8 on charges of “offensive conduct conducive to breach of the peace” and “publication of false news” after criticising the Inspector General of Police.
Other incidents include the abduction and arrest of Wontumi TV presenter Akyemkwaa Nana Kofi Asare, the detention of TikTok personalities Fante Comedy and Akosua Jollof, and the arrest of former parliamentary aspirant Alfred Ababio Kumi, who was charged with publication of false news after alleging judicial misconduct.
“Twin Laws” Under Fire
The MFWA criticised the continued use of Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and Section 76 of the Electronic Communications Act (Act 775), describing them as “Twin Laws” that have survived the repeal of criminal libel.
According to the group, the “fear and panic” clause in Section 208 is “a vestige of the colonial era designed to suppress dissent,” while Section 76 has been used “arbitrarily to shield public officials and the powerful.”
It also warned that although the government’s proposed Misinformation, Disinformation, Hate Speech and Publication of Other Information (MDHI) Bill seeks to repeal these laws, it introduces “provisions that effectively replicate the laws it seeks to repeal,” adding that the threshold for defining hate speech is “so elastic that it could potentially encompass any speech that is merely embarrassing or politically inconvenient.”
“A Betrayal of Democratic Gains”
The MFWA said the trend represents “a gravedigging betrayal” of Ghana’s hard-won gains on free expression since the repeal of the Criminal Libel Law in 2001.
“It is deeply disappointing that this pattern of criminalising speech has once again reared its head,” the statement said. “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.”
While acknowledging that it does not endorse the comments made in the cited cases, the MFWA insisted that civil remedies — including rejoinders, National Media Commission arbitration and civil defamation suits — remain the appropriate avenues for addressing reputational harm. It argued that criminal prosecution is a disproportionate measure that chills free speech, discourages whistleblowing and shrinks civic space, in violation of international human rights frameworks Ghana has signed onto.
MFWA’s Call
The organisation urged authorities to immediately drop the criminal charges against all persons arrested and ensure that those in custody are afforded their constitutional rights. It also called on the judiciary to prioritise non-custodial sanctions for speech-related offences, and pressed the government to urgently repeal Section 208 of Act 29 and Section 76 of Act 775 to prevent the continued use of these laws as instruments of repression. Additionally, it requested a review of the MDHI Bill to ensure it does not reintroduce “the repressive elements of the past.”
The MFWA said that Ghana’s reputation as a beacon of media freedom is at stake, warning: “The nation cannot claim to be a champion of free expression while arbitrary arrests exist for speech offences.”
