NPP Activists Gen. Buhari and Godfred Damoah Detained Despite Meeting Bail Conditions

• NPP social media activist Gen. Buhari and Godfred Ansu Damoah were arrested by state security after sharing a video involving President Mahama
• Both activists were granted court bail of GHC 30,000 with 2 sureties, which they satisfied over a week ago
• NPP activist Curtis A. Owusu has accused the state of weaponising bail to punish opposition members

Two New Patriotic Party online activists, Mohammed Buhari, popularly known as Gen. Buhari, and Godfred Ansu Damoah, remain in state custody despite having fulfilled the conditions of their court bail more than a week ago, according to reports emerging on social media.

The pair were picked up by state security following the circulation of a video purportedly showing President John Mahama demanding GH¢150 million from the nation's security coordinator.

Damoah was the first to be arrested, while Gen. Buhari later presented himself to police after receiving an official invitation to assist with investigations.

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Bail granted but freedom denied

A court granted both men bail set at GHC 30,000 each, with two sureties required.

According to an X post by Curtis A. Owusu, both activists met those conditions in full, yet authorities have continued to hold them, citing the need to confirm the sureties as justification for the extended detention.

Gen. Buhari was subsequently charged with the same offence that had been levelled against Damoah, described by party supporters as frivolous.

NPP accuses state of abusing arrest powers

The prolonged detention has drawn sharp criticism from within NPP circles.

Activist Curtis A. Owusu, known on X as @_i_am_Curtis, condemned the continued imprisonment of the two men, arguing that holding a person in custody after bail conditions have been satisfied is unlawful.

"It is an abuse of arrest powers to keep a person in custody when he or she has met the conditions of his bail and any further detention is unlawful. This is yet another example of the State weaponizing bail as a means to punish members of the opposition," Owusu wrote.

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The case has intensified concerns among opposition supporters about the use of legal instruments against critics and political activists in Ghana.

Read the X post below:

NPP sounds alarm over communicator's arrest

In a related development, YEN.com.gh reported that the NPP in Asante Akyem South had sounded the alarm after its communications officer, Richard Nana Basoah, was allegedly taken by three unidentified men.

Basoah was reportedly bundled into a vehicle outside the Awenepa 95.5 FM studios in Juaso at around 6:20 pm on Monday.

The party's deputy secretary said neither Basoah's family nor the NPP knew his whereabouts or which agency might have been holding him.

Source: YEN.com.gh