Threats to Kill Mahama and Children Are Not Free Speech, Says Kwakye Ofosu

Threats to take the lives of President John Dramani Mahama and his children cannot be defended as free expression, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, the Minister of State responsible for Government Communications, has said.

Mr Kwakye Ofosu made the remarks in Accra while representing the President at the 30th edition of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Media Awards, as first reported by Citi News.

He told the gathering that such threats directed at the head of state and his family were criminal acts. He cautioned fellow politicians against backing that kind of behaviour simply because it might help their own political prospects.

"For instance, threatening to kill a president and his children is not free speech. It is brazen criminality," he said.

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Call for consistency on press freedom

The minister also called on those in political leadership to be consistent in standing up for free expression, especially when journalists are threatened or intimidated over stories that run against political interests.

He pointed to past cases in which journalists working in northern Ghana fled the country because they feared for their safety after publishing reports that some politicians found unwelcome.

"Our words in support of free speech must not ring hollow, especially when in the north, in the past, journalists had to flee our country for fear of their lives because they published uncomfortable truths," Mr Kwakye Ofosu said.

Hate speech and dissent

At the same time, he warned that efforts to tackle hate speech should not become an excuse to silence dissent, critical reporting or views that are unpopular.

He accepted that disagreement is essential to a functioning democracy, but argued that the intentional stirring up of hatred, violence and intolerance should not be shielded in the name of free expression.

"Democracy thrives on disagreement, and what it cannot accommodate is the deliberate incitement of hatred, violence, and intolerance. A clear distinction must be struck between criminal conduct and the expression of free speech," he said.

The minister did not name any individual responsible for the threats against the President and his family in the remarks reported.