By: Franklin ASARE-DONKOH
The Member of Parliament (MP) for the Suame constituency in the Ashanti Region, Mr. John Darko, has criticized the former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr. Godfred Yeboah Dame, for his decision to prosecute some members of the Democracy Hub protesters.
According to him, the legal cases instituted by Mr. Dame—the immediate past Attorney General under the Nana Addo-Bawumia-led government—against members of the Democracy Hub, including leading figures such as social activist Ama Governor and #FixTheCountry convener Oliver Barker-Vormawor, were unnecessary and politically unwise.
Commenting on the recent withdrawal of legal cases against Ama Governor and Oliver Barker-Vormawor on The Big Issue, a current affairs show on Channel One TV, the Suame lawmaker, who is also a long-standing legal practitioner, expressed the view that certain cases pursued by the former government through its Attorney General should never have been prosecuted in the first place.
He added that such prosecutions risked turning the accused into “martyrs.”
“As a lawyer, I believe some cases shouldn’t be prosecuted. In fact, not even just as a lawyer, but as a politician, I think that when you prosecute some cases, you give these people a martyr tag. Ama Governor and these people shouldn’t have been prosecuted,” he reiterated.
Although the Suame lawmaker acknowledged that there was initial justification for legal action, citing damage to public property, he maintained that politically, the decision to prosecute was ill-advised, adding, “I thought that politically, it wasn’t a smart decision to prosecute them.”
He further suggested that the government’s move to withdraw charges against Ama Governor and Barker-Vormawor was a strategic attempt to demonstrate neutrality, ensuring that the withdrawal of cases did not appear to favor only members and associates of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).
“I feel that the withdrawal of these cases was to show the public that we are not only withdrawing cases against NDC people. But anyway, I think it is okay that these cases have been withdrawn. The acts by members of the Democracy Hub didn’t really cause financial loss to the state, so it’s okay,” he retorted.
While supporting the decision to drop the charges, the Suame MP also issued a word of caution to the individuals involved.
“I hope and believe that Ama Governor and Vormawor will take this as a lesson and at least try to conduct themselves well. They are lawyers, and I hope they will make the profession proud,” he advised.
The current government, through its Attorney General, has formally dropped all charges against a group of individuals linked to the Democracy Hub protests, who staged an anti-galamsey march in Ghana’s capital, Accra, between September 21 and September 23, 2024.
The group included activist Oliver Barker-Vormawor and social media influencer Elorm Ama Governor-Ababio, popularly known as Ama Governor, who joined 50 other individuals in protesting against illegal mining.
The decision, submitted to the Accra Circuit Court in January 2025, was filed under nolle prosequi, effectively dismissing the case and granting full freedom to those previously accused.
A court document signed by Attorney General and Minister of Justice Dr. Dominic Ayine confirmed that the state would no longer pursue the case, bringing the matter to a close.
