Wontumi FM journalist granted GH₵100,000 bail after two weeks in custody

A Kumasi-based journalist with Wontumi FM, Emmanuel Kwakye Asare, has been granted bail after spending two weeks in police custody over allegations of publishing false information with the intent to cause fear and panic.

Asare was arrested on August 12, 2025, and charged with one count of offensive conduct. The court granted him bail in the sum of GH₵100,000 with two sureties, both of whom must be civil servants. His lawyers are currently completing the necessary processes to meet the bail conditions.

The journalist is scheduled to reappear before the court on September 1, 2025, as proceedings continue.

The charge stems from comments Asare made on his programme, where he alleged that President John Dramani Mahama had prior knowledge of the August 6, 2025, helicopter crash that killed eight people. The prosecution opposed bail, arguing that investigations into the matter were still ongoing.

However, presiding judge Samuel Bright Acquah ruled that there was no sufficient basis to deny bail, though he noted that his decision was informed by judicial precedent, referencing an earlier case in which a young man was remanded for insulting then-President Nana Akufo-Addo.