Mahama is treacherous, pretentious, deceitful, and has evil in his heart — Janet Nabla

The 2024 presidential candidate of the People’s National Party (PNP), Janet Asana Nabla, has launched a scathing attack on President John Dramani Mahama, describing him as a pretentious leader whose actions contradict his public image.

According to her, whilst the President often projects himself as a compassionate and God-fearing leader, his administration’s actions reveal a character driven by ill intent.

Madam Nabla was reacting to a recent protest staged under the “Women’s Voices Matter” initiative in Accra.

The demonstration saw several women march through the capital’s main streets to protest the arrest and detention of Salomey Awity Baffoe, a 40-year-old senior nursing officer and mother of three from Techiman.

The group condemned what they termed unlawful arrests, state-sponsored injustice, and a growing threat to free speech and women’s rights in Ghana.

Speaking in an exclusive interview on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Madam Nabla accused the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration of deliberately using state security agencies to intimidate and suppress critical female voices.

“There are several women with cases currently pending before the High Court who are facing very difficult times. These arrests are happening because the government wants to silence the voices of women,” she lamented.

She further questioned why the NDC administration has reintroduced a “culture of silence” into Ghana’s democratic landscape.

She alleged that whilst in opposition, President Mahama and the NDC uttered all manner of harsh statements against the previous government without facing arrest, yet they are now harassing, arresting, and unlawfully detaining critics under their watch.

Speaking to host Kwabena Agyapong, Madam Nabla insisted that the NDC government is actively manipulating security apparatuses to go after political opponents.

She dismissed President Mahama’s recent public disapproval of the arrests of political commentators, describing his comments as mere political optics.

She reminded the public that President Mahama had earlier warned that security agencies would track down and prosecute individuals who insult public officials on social media using their IP addresses — a promise she noted is now being actively enforced.

“Our question to President John Dramani Mahama is whether we are under a military regime. Are we under military rule? If former President Akufo-Addo had arrested you and your NDC people like you are doing today, would you have liked that?” she asked.

“President Mahama pretends to be a compassionate person through his public speeches, but all these are just for public show. He is a treacherous person with his heart filled with evil. He is manipulative and has no sense of compassion, like he makes it appear. When the President speaks, he appears to be like a saint, but his heart and soul are all dark,” she added.

Madam Nabla urged Ghanaians not to be misled by the President’s calm demeanor.

“What we are saying is that enough is enough. President Mahama has set his eyes on women to silence, intimidate, and harass them. That is why we went on the demonstration. We, the women of Ghana, have had enough, and we will no longer allow anyone to harass us,” she declared.

She further noted that President Mahama promised to accord 30 per cent of ministerial and political appointments to women, but that commitment has instead translated into “30 per cent arrests of women” — an act she characterized as a breach of both the Constitution and the Affirmative Action Act.

She also criticized the President for failing to fulfill his promise to establish the Women’s Development Bank, choosing instead to focus state energy on arresting citizens.

Madam Nabla warned that if the President fails to heed their call to immediately release all women arrested or jailed for criticizing the government, they will escalate their protests across the country.

Although she admitted that some of those on social media may be excessive in their language, arresting and prosecuting them was not the best approach.

​She proposed the use of caution and reformation instead of arrest, harassment, and prosecution.