Salomey Awiti Baffoe, a 40‑year‑old senior nursing officer from Techiman, was arrested at her home in Hansua on September 13 after police accused her of aiding the circulation of videos from the UK‑based operator of the “Ghana Jollof” TikTok account. She was brought before the Adentan Circuit Court in Accra and charged with abetment of crime under Sections 20(1) and 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960. Baffoe has pleaded not guilty.
According to the prosecution, Baffoe acted as a liaison for the “Ghana Jollof” account, helped recruit others to redistribute the videos and received money that was allegedly passed on to additional participants. The allegations remain unproven in court.
Popular TikTok creator Barbara Asantewaa Kodua, known as “Ghana Jollof,” has publicly declared the arrest a case of “purely political persecution.” She argues that the charges are aimed at Baffoe because of her husband’s role as an NPP communications director in Chicago, and that the police have not presented evidence that Baffoe shared any videos.
“The police don’t have any charge against this woman. But they want to force and find a charge against her,” Kodua said. She also questioned why the initial charge of staging a coup d’état was dropped in favour of a claim of spreading false information.
Kodua cited a video of commentator Kevin Taylor, who allegedly warned that “after 10 days of swearing in Mahama, he will make sure that the laws don’t work in the country,” to suggest a double standard in law enforcement. She accused authorities of violating Baffoe’s rights, noting that her children were left behind during the arrest and that the police failed to inform her family of her whereabouts.
Police have maintained that Baffoe’s alleged role as a liaison and money‑transferring intermediary justifies the charges, while Baffoe’s family insists she has no social media presence and has never posted or shared the “Ghana Jollof” videos.
The case is currently pending in court, with Baffoe remanded for two weeks. Observers will watch for any developments in the legal proceedings and the broader debate over freedom of expression and political bias in Ghanaian law enforcement.
