The Executive Director for the African Centre for International Law and Accountability (ACILA), Mr. William Nyarko has intensified calls on government to abolish laws that criminalizes “false publication,” arguing that such provisions pose a significant threat to press freedom and democratic accountability.

‎The call comes amid growing concern that the continued existence and occasional application of these laws create a chilling effect on journalists, media practitioners, and citizens who seek to express opinions or expose wrongdoing. 

‎Mr. Nyarko advocated that the fear of arrest, prosecution, or intimidation discourages investigative reporting and undermines the role of the media as a watchdog of society.

‎The Executive Director for ACILA contended that criminalizing the publication of false news is incompatible with modern democratic principles. 

‎He argued that while misinformation is a legitimate concern, criminal sanctions are excessive and often deprives the media from freely expressing their thoughts on particular subject matters.

‎Mr. William Nyarko made this expression after a two-day engagement with media practitioners in the Central Region on rights-based approach to journalism by CDD-Ghana on March 17 and 18, 2026, in Cape Coast.

‎Speaking in an interview with Sompa TV's Eric Annan, he beseeched government to align national laws with international standards on freedom of expression. Emphasizing that many democratic countries have moved away from criminal defamation and false publication laws in favor of civil approaches, thus Ghana should toe similar path.

‎He reiterated that repealing such provisions would strengthen Ghana’s reputation as a beacon of democracy and press freedom in Africa, as he warned that retaining outdated laws could reverse these gains.

‎Adding that the abolishing of the 'publication of false news' is long overdue, having had Ghana inherit the provision together with the criminal liable law from its colonial masters the British who have since abolish such provisions from its judicial system.

‎He emphasized that it took resilience to fight for the repealing of the criminal liable law from the country's constitution in the year 2001 under former President John Agyekum Kuffuor's administration, an abolishing which still saw 'false publication' retained as a crime till date but ought to have been repealed together with criminal liable law.

‎Sompaonline.com//Eric Annan