Former Member of Parliament for Sekondi, Andrew Egyapa Mercer, has accused the government of using arrests and denial of bail to intimidate opposition supporters, particularly memb
The report indicates that former Member of Parliament for Sekondi, Andrew Egyapa Mercer, has accused the government of using arrests and denial of bail as tools to intimidate opposition supporters, particularly members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
It further notes that speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, May 23, Mr Mercer stated the NPP does not support insults in political discourse, but argued that the government’s response to controversial public comments had become excessive and politically motivated.
“Speaking for myself and the NPP, I dare say we do not subscribe to insults in our body politic,” he said.
“I certainly do not think that as political actors we need to advance our political arguments based on insults.”
However, he argued that individuals accused of minor offences under Sections 207 and 208 of the Criminal Offences Act should not be arrested and denied bail while investigations are ongoing.
“If somebody is accused of breaching Section 208 or 207, we do not think that denying that person bail is the way to go,” he stated.
“Nobody is saying do not investigate, but why do you have to arrest and detain somebody who has committed a misdemeanour?”
Mr Mercer alleged that there is an emerging pattern of state institutions being used against opposition figures.
“If you look at the trend of arrests, it clearly demonstrates that the NDC has set out to weaponise state institutions against actors within the NPP,” he claimed.
According to him, supporters of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) also make inflammatory comments online but are not subjected to the same treatment.
“People who belong to their stock are also on social media saying all sorts of things that are, if not the same, clearly equal to what they accuse and arrest NPP people of doing,” he said.
He further alleged that denial of bail was increasingly being used as a political tool.
“Clearly, they are using bail as a target, or denial of bail as a target, against NPP supporters,” he said, describing it as “a growing pattern of intimidation”.
Mr Mercer warned that such actions could undermine Ghana’s democratic reputation if left unchecked.
