Under Ghana’s President Mahama, near-total impunity for attacks on 17 journalists

Under President John Dramani Mahama's administration in Ghana, journalists experienced a disturbing pattern of attacks with "almost complete impunity." Despite Mahama's inauguration pledge in January 2025 to usher in "an era of true media freedom," the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) documented eight separate incidents resulting in assaults on at least 17 journalists during his term.

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We need justice. We are not safe.

The perpetrators varied, with state security forces implicated in eight attacks. Police, firefighters, and soldiers were identified as attackers in several cases. Additionally, nine journalists were targeted by illegal miners and unidentified individuals. Reporter Samuel Addo, who was attacked by firefighters on January 5 while filming the aftermath of a market fire, voiced the prevailing sentiment: "We need justice. We are not safe."

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I am a journalist by training. And so, there’s no way, you know, we’ll countenance the continued assault on journalists. We need a reorientation of many of our security personnel to understand that just as they are doing their job of providing peace and safety, journalists are also doing their job of informing the people … Occasionally these things will come up. But when they come, they must be dealt with as firmly as possible.

CPJ's investigation revealed that most attacked journalists called for swift arrests and prosecutions of those responsible, along with public communication from authorities regarding accountability measures. However, the lack of action has left them feeling unsafe and demotivated. Charles Mensah, a TV producer attacked while covering elections in Ghana's Ashanti region in 2025, lamented, "Nothing changed when President Mahama took over."

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They detained me after they knew that I was a journalist. So as a journalist I feel like I am not safe. It has demotivated me from going out there to the fronts and risking my life.

President Mahama himself stated in January 2026 that assaults on journalists would "be dealt with as firmly as possible." He assured viewers that those involved in Mr. Addo's case had been identified and "interdicted," though CPJ and Mr. Addo found no evidence to support this claim. Communications minister Samuel Nartey George reiterated Mahama's commitment to media freedom on June 3, calling the press "the heart of the nation's democracy." However, the impunity for attacks on journalists under Mahama continues a broader trend of abuse, including the unresolved murder of investigative reporter Ahmed Divela in 2019.

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Nothing changed when President Mahama took over.