Kofi Bentil, a Senior lawyer and IMANI Africa Vice-President, has weighed in on the one-year jail sentencing for TikToker Camilla Alhassan over remarks she made about President John Dramani Mahama.
According to Kofi Bentil, insulting a president is not an offence, and no one must suffer for what they say.
Kofi Bentil argued that Free Speech means nothing if people are jailed for insulting leaders.
In a Facebook post, Kofi Bentil stated, “Insulting a president is not an offence. No one must suffer for what they say! Unless they are guilty of defamation.
Free Speech means nothing if people are jailed for insulting leaders!! Only despots and failed nations do that!”.
His comments come on the heels of TikToker Camilla Alhassan being sentenced to one year in prison by the Accra Circuit Court.
TikToker Camilla Alhassan was sentenced after pleading guilty to offensive conduct and publishing false news over videos alleging, without evidence, that President John Dramani Mahama buried 32 cows to win the 2024 elections.
TikToker Camilla Alhassan was arrested for publishing false news and offensive conduct over videos insulting President John Dramani Mahama.
According to reports, TikToker Camilla Alhassan was put before an Accra Circuit Court and pleaded guilty to charges levelled against her.
Camilla Alhassan appeared before Accra Circuit Court 1 on Friday, June 10, the same day she was arrested and admitted to all the charges preferred against her.
Her Honour Emmanuella Asmah, who was presiding judge, deferred sentencing to July 16, 2026, and ordered that Alhassan undergo a pregnancy test before the court delivers its judgment.
TikToker Camilla Alhassan has since been sentenced to one year in prison by the Accra Circuit Court.
Her arrest follows a series of videos posted on TikTok in the aftermath of recent flooding and fire outbreaks in parts of Accra were she alleged that Mahama had sacrificed 32 cows to secure political power to conceal his purported sacrifices.
Also, in another video, TikToker Camilla Alhassan was captured with offensive words directed towards President Mahama.
In a post shared by askghmedia read, “TikToker Camilla Alhassan has been arrested by the Ghana Police and arraigned before the Accra High Court for insulting President Mahama and spreading false news.
She pleaded guilty before the Court, where Her Honour Justice Emmanuella Asmah ordered that she undergo a pregnancy test before her sentence is delivered on July 16, 2026”.
In related news, Shamima Muslim, the Deputy Presidential Spokesperson, has said that President John Dramani Mahama does not have the time to call for the arrest of TikTokers or anyone.
The Deputy Presidential Spokesperson highlighted that President Mahama is not interested in following the bad example of the NPP by eroding the trust of Ghana’s accountability.
Speaking on StarrFM, Shamima Muslim stated, “President Mahama is not interested in following the bad example of the NPP. He is not interested in eroding the trust of our accountability institutions; he is interested in building good governance principles that restore trust in these institutions.
These institutions are not perfect institutions that we all agree on; the judiciary, the legislature, the executive, and the media are not perfect institutions. They are human institutions they can also be influenced.
The security agencies, do you think that President Mahama actually takes the telephone or sends somebody to go and tell the IGP to arrest this person and not give the person bail?
So you think President Mahama has time to send someone to go and arrest a TikToker, then you don’t know who President Mahama is”, she added.
See the post below:
@ghnow_ TikToker Camilla Alhassan appears before the Accra Circuit Court today for sentencing after pleading guilty to charges of offensive conduct and the publication of false news against President Mahama #GHNow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
@ghnow_ Tiktoker Camila Alhassan sentenced 1 year imprisonment for spreading false information against the President #GHNow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
