Former Managing News Editor of the Insight Newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr., has defended the need for free expression while insisting that constitutional limits must also be respected in the ongoing debate over the detention of Bono Regional NPP Chairman, Kwame Baffoe.
Speaking to host Moro Awudu on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana on May 20, the veteran journalist said freedom of speech was essential for democratic progress, but warned that it could not be treated as an unlimited right.
“My study of history reveals that any position, any view, which has become dominant today or even proven scientifically, started as a minority viewpoint,” he said.
Mr Pratt argued that societies progress through open debate and the exchange of ideas.
“That is why the right of free expression is important, because if you don’t encourage the right of free expression, you stifle debate, you stifle discussion, and you make it impossible for society to progress,” he stated.
However, he stressed that Ghana’s 1992 Constitution clearly places restrictions on the exercise of that right.
“The Constitution itself places limits on free expression. It is not absolute,” he said.
Mr Pratt cited threats against public officials as an example of speech that cannot be protected under the law.
“You are stopped from making a public declaration that you will kill the President and his wife and put their bodies in cocoa sacks. It is indefensible,” he said.
He also defended the discretion of judges to deny bail where there is a likelihood that an accused person could repeat an offence or evade justice.
“What that means is that the judge, in his view and based on evidence, comes to the conclusion that if you are granted bail, you are likely to abscond,” he said.
“This is lawful. The law is clear on this matter.”
Mr Pratt criticised the New Patriotic Party over a petition presented to the Moroccan Ambassador in Ghana, questioning the decision to seek diplomatic intervention over alleged human rights concerns.
“I feel so embarrassed. Do you want to compare Ghana’s human rights record to the human rights record of Morocco?” he asked.
He further accused some opposition figures of exaggerating Ghana’s democratic challenges.
“How can you describe Ghana today as a banana republic?” he questioned in response to comments made by some opposition politicians.
Mr Pratt also condemned attacks on the judiciary, describing comments questioning the competence of a sitting judge as dangerous and irresponsible.
“A senior lawyer and member of parliament publicly saying he wonders whether a sitting judge passed his law exams is a serious indictment on the judiciary,” he said.
He warned against what he described as political “equalisation”, arguing that past abuses under previous governments should never be used to justify future violations of rights.
“If NPP was in power and violated rights, it does not justify any other government doing the same today,” he said.
