Stop the political persecution of opposition members – NPP Russia branch tells Mahama govt
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Russia branch has accused the Mahama administration of political persecution of opposition members.
Chairman of the NPP Russia branch, Ebenezer Wepari, said that if anyone has committed a crime, the evidence must speak in a competent court of law, not through intimidation and abuse of state power.
In his statement, he noted there is a growing pattern where state institutions that should be impartial – the police, the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), the National Security, and other investigative bodies – are being weaponised to harass, intimidate, and unlawfully persecute members of the opposition New Patriotic Party.
“We also call on the Judiciary, the Peace Council, Civil Society Organisations, the Ghana Bar Association, the clergy, and the international community to speak out and demand an end to this dangerous path,” he said.
Below is his full statement…
THE DANGEROUS USE OF STATE POWER TO PERSECUTE THE OPPOSITION MUST STOP
Ghana’s democracy was built on the hard-won principle that no government is above the law, and no citizen should be punished for belonging to the opposition. What we are witnessing today under the current National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration is a worrying departure from that principle.
There is a growing pattern where state institutions that should be impartial – the police, EOCO, the National Security, and other investigative bodies – are being weaponised to harass, intimidate, and unlawfully persecute members of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).
This is not accountability. Accountability follows due process, it is transparent, and it is applied equally to all. What is happening now is selective justice. Opposition figures are publicly paraded, detained for lengthy periods without proper charge, and subjected to media trials, while due process is ignored.
We condemn this in the strongest terms.
1. It undermines the rule of law. When prosecution is driven by politics rather than evidence, it destroys public confidence in our justice system.
2. It threatens our democracy. A country where the opposition lives in fear of arrest cannot be called a free democracy.
3. It damages Ghana’s image. Investors and development partners watch how we treat political dissent. Persecution is a sign of weak governance, not strong leadership.
We call on the President and his government to immediately stop the political persecution of opposition members. If anyone has committed a crime, let the evidence speak in a competent court of law, not through intimidation and abuse of state power.
We also call on the Judiciary, the Peace Council, Civil Society Organizations, the Ghana Bar Association, the clergy, and the international community to speak out and demand an end to this dangerous path.
Ghana belongs to all of us – NDC and NPP alike. No government has the right to criminalize opposition.
Enough is enough.
CHAIRMAN EBENEZER WEPARI
NPP RUSSIA BRANCH
