Member of Parliament for Assin South, Reverend John Ntim Fordjour, has criticized the administration of President John Dramani Mahama for what he describes as an emerging culture of intolerance toward opposition voices.
His remarks follow an incident on April 9, in which officials from the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) attempted to arrest him at his residence.
The attempted arrest reportedly followed comments made by Rev. Fordjour suggesting the existence of irregular aircraft movements involving drug trafficking—remarks that have sparked national debate and calls for investigation. Government Spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu confirmed the NIB’s presence at the MP’s residence, stating that they were acting with a valid arrest warrant.
“NIB officials are currently at Ntim Fordjour’s residence. They have an arrest warrant. He is refusing to cooperate. They have given him time to cooperate, failing which they will act,” Kwakye Ofosu said.
In a statement shared on social media following the incident, Rev. Fordjour condemned what he termed a “needless invasion” of his home, asserting that no legal warrant was presented at the time of the attempted arrest. He revealed that former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had reached out to express support for him and his family.
“Yesterday, as the former President of the Republic, H.E. Nana Akufo-Addo, placed a call to me and conveyed his kind thoughts to me and my family, following the needless invasion of our home without a warrant by men purportedly sent by the government for raising matters of serious concerns worth probing on behalf of the Minority Caucus, I came to appreciate the more, how tolerance shapes our democracy,” he wrote.
Rev. Fordjour contrasted the situation with what he described as a more tolerant atmosphere under the previous Akufo-Addo administration. According to him, during Akufo-Addo’s eight-year tenure, no opposition Member of Parliament was harassed by state security for fulfilling their oversight duties or for demanding investigations into public matters.
“In the eight years of extraordinary leadership of President Akufo-Addo, no opposition MP was harassed by the state security apparatus for demanding probes in the discharge of their parliamentary oversight. Every fierce criticism and demand for probe by opposition MPs were graciously accommodated without threats and harassment,” he stated.
He went on to criticize what he sees as a broader pattern of intolerance under the current administration, describing it as a troubling shift away from democratic norms.
“The level of intolerance demonstrated by President Mahama in his reaction to a press statement of the Minority Caucus simply demanding probes into various matters of urgent and serious public interest is unprecedented and a major setback in our democratic pursuit. This is indeed beyond the culture of silence. Truth will stand always,” he concluded.
The incident continues to draw political attention, with opposition lawmakers raising concerns about constitutional rights, state overreach, and the handling of dissent in the democratic process.
