Martin Kpebu, a private legal practitioner, voiced his concerns on Eyewitness News on Thursday, September 17, about the Adenta Circuit Court 1’s decision to remand senior nursing officer Salomey Awity Baffoe for two weeks while authorities probe her alleged links to the Ghana Jollof TikTok account that has criticised government officials.
Kpebu said he saw no sufficient justification for keeping Baffoe in custody, noting that investigators could examine her phone without detaining her. "Based on my experience as a lawyer, from what I read, I don’t think this woman should be in custody. I don’t think so," he told the programme.
The court remanded Baffoe on Thursday as investigations continue. Kpebu argued that if investigators believe material connected to the Ghana Jollof account was shared through Baffoe’s phone, the device could be seized and examined without holding the person. "The phone is seized. Then police will come back for an order to go and search the phone, etc. But not the person in custody," he explained.
He added that the alleged material had already been published and that investigators did not need to keep Baffoe in custody to establish what was contained on the device. "Her phones are what you need. You don’t need a person in custody," he said.
Kpebu distinguished this case from investigations involving suspects who may pose an immediate threat or where there is direct evidence linking them to a serious offence. He cited drug seizures and cases where a person is alleged to have physically harmed another as situations where remand may serve a clearer investigative purpose. "But this particular type, so I’m talking based on experience, the way we differentiate the cases," he said.
He maintained that police should continue their investigations but that detention was not necessary to achieve that objective. "By all means, police should investigate, but I don’t think remand was necessary," he concluded.
The case raises questions about the balance between investigative needs and individual liberty in Ghana’s legal system. Observers will watch whether the court upholds its decision or if a higher court intervenes to alter the remand status.
