'This is not good for our democracy' — Manasseh Azure on TikToker's jail term

Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has criticised the one-year prison sentence handed to TikToker Camilla Alhassan.

His comments come after an Accra Circuit Court on Thursday, July 16, sentenced Camilla Alhassan to one year in prison after she pleaded guilty to offensive conduct and the publication of false news.

She was prosecuted over videos in which she falsely claimed that President Mahama buried 32 cows as part of rituals to secure victory in the 2024 general election.

In a social media post on the same day, argued that while the comments about President John Dramani Mahama were false and condemnable, they should not have resulted in a criminal conviction.

"What she said is reprehensible, but not criminal. If such foolishness were to be criminalised, we wouldn't have enough prisons to contain people," he wrote.

The investigative journalist argued that under Ghana's laws, publishing false news becomes a criminal offence only when it is capable of causing fear and alarm, contending that the TikToker's comments did not meet that threshold.

He also questioned what he described as selective enforcement of the law, pointing to previous instances in which public officials who made false statements with potentially wider public consequences were not prosecuted.

"It is unfortunate that some judges are capitulating to frivolous charges and passing these sentences. This is not good for our democracy," Manasseh stated.