Professor Stephen Kwaku Azar is a legal scholar
Legal scholar, Professor Stephen Kwaku Azar, has clarified that while Ghana’s laws permit accused persons to engage in political activities, allowing them to campaign openly carries serious ethical and democratic consequences.
In a Facebook post on January 18, 2026, Kwaku Azar stressed that the issue is not a legal one, noting that under Ghana’s justice system, an accused person remains innocent until convicted and retains full political rights unless restricted by a court.
“Let us be clear from the start. This is not a legal question. The law has already spoken,” he stated, adding that unless a court has said otherwise through bail conditions, the accused can still mount political platforms.
However, Kwaku Azar warned that politics goes beyond legality and is deeply shaped by public perception and moral signalling.
According to him, when individuals facing serious charges such as corruption, illegal mining, environmental pollution, or the plunder of public resources are given prominent roles in political campaigns, it sends a damaging message to the public.
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“The message is not subtle. It is loud. It is clear. And it is damaging,” he said.
He outlined three major consequences of such conduct, beginning with the normalisation of impunity.
“The public is taught, slowly and repeatedly, that charges do not matter. That accountability can wait. That political usefulness is more important than public trust,” he indicated.
Kwaku Azar further warned that visible political campaigning by accused persons risks politicising the justice system, turning prosecutors into perceived political opponents and courtrooms into extensions of campaign platforms.
“That is not democracy; that is intimidation by proximity,” he noted.
He also cautioned that such actions create a public perception of a future political bargain, where loyalty today may translate into protection tomorrow, even if no such arrangement exists.
“Institutions do not survive on intentions; they survive on trust,” he said.
Turning his attention to political candidates, Kwaku Azar argued that leaders who accept open support from individuals facing serious charges project weakness on crime and accountability.
“You cannot claim to fight corruption with one hand while shaking hands with unresolved allegations with the other. The public notices. They always do,” he stated.
He warned that such associations raise doubts about prosecutorial independence and create fears of future interference in the justice system.
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Kwaku Azar also placed responsibility on the public, cautioning citizens against celebrating accused persons on campaign platforms.
“A society that cheers this behaviour becomes complicit in its own disappointment,” he said adding that they teach the next generation that power is a shield and loyalty is a defence.
Offering what he described as ‘free political advice,’ he urged accused persons to step back from political campaigns and focus on clearing their names through the courts.
“Do not turn your legal troubles into political noise,” he advised.
He called on political candidates to publicly and firmly reject such campaign support, stressing that silence or acceptance is not neutrality but a signal.
“Not because the person is guilty, but because you are serious about crime. Sound discretion is leadership,” he cautioned.
He noted that while society quickly condemns visible crimes such as armed robbery, it often hesitates when alleged wrongdoing is committed by elites.
“The hesitation appears only when the crime wears a suit,” he said, describing the tolerance for elite misconduct as selective comfort rather than moral confusion.
Read the full post below:
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Meanwhile, watch as Ghanaians respond to Ofori-Atta’s detention
