Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has called for a national conversation to address the growing culture of insults and vitriol in Ghana’s political discourse.

Speaking on Joy FM, Kpebu said the issue should be approached through a broader discussion involving political actors and citizens rather than relying on arrests, police cells and court cases.

“The first thing I’m curious about is that we all want this menace of insults against politicians and other people in society to stop. That culture of vitriol, we want to control the vitriol. It’s getting out of hand,” he said.

Kpebu acknowledged that he had also been criticised over his description of former President Nana Akufo-Addo as “manpam”, a song by a musician directed at the former president.

“Even me talking to you, for saying Akufo-Addo is ‘manpam,’ which is a song by a musician sung against him to hold him accountable — people say that my hands are also soiled,” he said.

He said the situation showed that the problem had become widespread and required a national discussion on how political disagreements should be expressed.

“So it appears we’ve all soiled our hands one way or another. That’s how come I thought that look, this thing is not about handcuffs and police cells and trials. It’s about a national conversation,” he said.

Kpebu proposed that the conversation should give political actors and citizens an opportunity to agree on limits for abusive political discourse.

“So that when we have the national conversation, we’ll call a truce,” he added.

He also pointed to the level of insults associated with the Ghana Jollof account as part of what prompted his call for a broader discussion.

“Ghana Jollof’s vitriol is higher. Nobody has more vitriol than her,” he said.

“The moment I saw that her vitriol is higher, the speed at which she launches the insults, the other guys can’t match her, I said no, let’s do a national conversation.”

Kpebu further said Barbara Asantewaa Kodua, whom police have alleged is behind the Ghana Jollof account, had previously indicated that she would stop if Kevin Taylor was restrained.

“She has stated clearly that if we can rein in Kevin Taylor, she would stop. She said that several times. There was one she even addressed to me,” he said.