Dampare: “Treasonable” Comments By Mahama, Asiedu Nketia, Bryan Not Criminal

The Inspector General of Police, Dr George Akufo Dampare has noted that recent comments by former President John Mahama, NDC Chairman Asiedu Nketia and Food and Agriculture Minister Bryan Acheampong are not criminal in nature.

This means their arrests can’t be effected as demanded by the two main political parties.

Following Hon Bryan Acheampong’s statement that the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) was not going to hand over power to the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in 2025, the latter petitioned the CID on April 11 to arrest the former.

The NDC referenced the arrest of its Suame Youth Organiser for inciting violence earlier this year to demand the arrest of Hon Bryan.

The NPP retaliated with another petition to the CID for the arrest of Mr  Mahama and Johnson Asiedu Nketia for similar comments they’ve made.

The ruling party referenced the “boot-for-boot” and “do-or-die” comments of Mr Mahama and Hon Asiedu Nketia’s reported assertion that the 2024 General Election will be “bloody”.

Each side described the comments as “treasonable” but during a meeting with the leadership of the two major political parties on April 17, Dr Dampare said Mr Mahama, Hon Asiedu Nketia and Hon Bryan Acheampong can not be arrested.

According to him, their comments failed the criminal threshold test after scrutiny by the Legal Unit of the Ghana Police Service- which probes all politically related incidents and determine any breach of legality and whether arrests and prosecutions can be made.

“The police further noted that statements of Former President John Mahama, Mr. Asiedu Nketiah, and Hon. Bryan Acheampong had all failed the criminal threshold test. However, the statements by the Suame NDC Youth organiser were patently criminal and breached the laws of the Republic hence his arrest and prosecution,” the National Youth Organiser of the NPP reported in a Facebook post.