Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has called for the immediate release of Salomey Bafoh Awiti, a nurse and mother of three who has been remanded in prison custody in connection with an alleged case involving the publication of false news.

In a Facebook post on Friday, September 18, 2026, Dr Bawumia said he was concerned about the circumstances surrounding the arrest and subsequent remand of the Techiman-based nurse.

I won’t use intelligence agencies to chase critics - Bawumia

He said reports that Awiti was picked up in the middle of the night by national intelligence officers and remanded for two weeks on suspicion of abetting the publication of false news were worrying.

“The story of how a Techiman-based nurse and mother of three (including a 4-year-old), Salomey Bafoh Awiti, was picked up in the middle of the night by national intelligence officers and has been remanded for two weeks on suspicion that she is abetting the publication of false news is very worrying to read,” he said.

The former Vice President said if given the opportunity to lead the country, he would not allow intelligence agencies to be used to pursue citizens for insulting the President or other public officials.

“I can assure Ghanaians that when given the opportunity, our intelligence agencies will not be reduced to chasing citizens for insulting the President or anyone else,” he said.

While condemning insults in political discourse, he urged politicians and the public to be decorous.

“I have always disavowed a politics of insults and will remind all in the political space of the need to be decorous. The ideas we need to transform our nation won’t come from insults,” he said.

He nevertheless argued that any infringement on the right to free speech could have implications for Ghana’s democracy.

“But I also remind the NDC government that any infringement on the right to free speech pushes our democracy backwards. Free speech, as unpalatable as it may be sometimes, is the foundation of our democracy,” he added.

Dr Bawumia also accused the government of selectively applying the law, arguing that some citizens are allowed to make insulting comments without facing the same consequences as others.

“Even more worrying is the government’s continuous selective application of our laws. Some citizens can insult and walk freely, and others are jailed because the government doesn’t like the target of their insults,” he said.

He subsequently called for Awiti and others he said had been similarly charged and jailed to be released.

“Please release Salomey Bafoh Awiti and others who have been similarly charged and jailed,” Dr Bawumia added.

Bafoh Awiti, a 40-year-old nurse from Techiman, has been remanded in custody for two weeks by the Adenta Complex Court.

She faces a charge of abetment of crime related to the publication of false news.

See the post below:



JKB/MA

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