Akosua Manu, the Advisor on Gender and Social Protection to former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has called out the COP Lydia Donkor, the Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service.
According to Akosua Manu, there was a certain pride in seeing a woman rise to lead one of the most powerful institutions in the country, adding that barely a year later, under COP Lydia Donkor’s watch, Ghana has witnessed deeply troubling reports about the treatment of women.
She further warns of the “cobra effect” where repressive tactics against critics like those linked to Ghana Jollof could create more vocal opponents.
In a lengthy social media post on X, Akosua Manu wrote, “MADAM CID BOSS DO NOT BECOME THE WEAPON FASHIONED AGAINST WOMEN.
Quietly and proudly, even women who sympathised with the NPP were genuinely happy to see Lydia Yaa Donkor elevated in her career.
CID Boss! A woman! A big deal.
Many felt she deserved it. There was a certain pride in seeing a woman rise to lead one of the most powerful institutions in the country.
But barely a year later, what exactly are women supposed to be proud of?
Under her watch, we have witnessed deeply troubling reports about the treatment of women by the very institutions meant to protect them. Women being picked up in circumstances that raise serious questions about due process. Families struggling to establish where their loved ones are being held. Allegations of intimidation and harassment.
And now Salomey.
Yesterday, I wrote extensively about her case, so I will not repeat it. But a woman being taken from her home around midnight and her family being unable to establish her whereabouts for days should disturb every reasonable Ghanaian.
Madam Lydia Yaa Donkor, this happened under your watch.
For a country that has known the dark days when people feared the proverbial knock on the door, we should be extremely careful about anything that begins to resemble that past.
And perhaps that is what makes this even more disappointing.
Women in Ghana already fight too many battles. When one of us rises to such an enormously powerful position, we expect her presence to mean something. We expect an educated, exposed woman who understands the law to be one of the strongest voices in the room when somebody suggests bending it.
So who is the voice of reason when the women who should understand our vulnerability appear to look the other way?
What is the point of celebrating women breaking glass ceilings if those underneath the shattered glass are other women?
And let us not pretend everything can be excused with “orders from above.”
Leadership comes with responsibility. If an instruction is unlawful, your duty is to the law, not the person giving the instruction.
The irony is that this heavy-handed approach may achieve exactly the opposite of what is intended.
You are looking for one “Ghana Jollof”, continue harassing women on suspicion, and you may create twenty more.
That is the cobra effect. People will not suddenly stop criticising governments because they are afraid. They become angrier, more anonymous and sometimes even more vicious.
Madam CID Boss, there must be a line. Draw it! LET US SEE YOUR HUMANITY!
Politics will pass. Governments will change. The reputation you build while entrusted with one of Ghana’s most powerful institutions will remain.
Women already go through a lot in this country called Ghana.
Do not allow yourself or the institution you lead to become another weapon fashioned against them.
Please champion sanity by letting it prevail!”
The development follows the arrest of Salomey, a nurse based in Techiman in the Bono East Region, who was reportedly arrested during a midnight operation at her residence in Hansua.
The incident reportedly occurred between 11 p.m. and midnight on Sunday, September 13, 2026.
According to Salomey’s brother, who was present, three individuals, comprising two men and a woman, arrived at the residence at about 11:30 p.m. dressed in black uniforms, believed to be from National Security.
The family described the allegation as a case of mistaken identity and insists that Salomey has no association with the anonymous account.
Meanwhile, Salomey Awity Baffoe, a Senior Nursing Officer, has been remanded for two weeks by the Adenta Circuit Court 1 over allegations that she is linked to a TikTok account identified as Ghana Jollof, which has been critical of government officials.
The Adenta Circuit Court 1 decision follows the nurse’s arrest in connection with investigations into individuals allegedly linked to the social media account.
Speaking to the media, her lawyer and MP for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, questioned the basis for her continued detention.
He argued that authorities had told the court that the person behind the Ghana Jollof account is currently in the United Kingdom.
“Because you want to arrest Ghana Jollof, you have remanded her for two weeks. Meanwhile, you told the court that Ghana Jollof is in the UK,” he said.
See the post below:
MADAM CID BOSS DO NOT BECOME THE WEAPON FASHIONED AGAINST WOMEN
— Akosua Manu (@KozieOzie) September 17, 2026
Quietly and proudly, even women who sympathised with the NPP were genuinely happy to see Lydia Yaa Donkor elevated in her career.
CID Boss! A woman! A big deal.
Many felt she deserved it. There was a certain… pic.twitter.com/lVlS4EYDvc
@ghnow_ The Voice of Landlords Association Ghana says landlords are not responsible for replacing every item destroyed or damaged by tenants, stressing that tenants also have responsibilities in rented properties. #GHnow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
@ghnow_ Some agents are working together with the Landslord but others are not #GHnow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
