Jail Them! – Kwaku Manu on social media insults
Ghanaian actor Kwaku Manu has called on President John Dramani Mahama to introduce legislation that would criminalize and penalize the rising trend of online insults directed at high-profile individuals in the country.
In a video shared widely on Instagram, Manu expressed deep concern about what he described as a growing culture of disrespect and verbal abuse on social media platforms, where some users target national leaders, traditional authorities, and successful businesspeople with offensive and unprintable language.
He specifically mentioned President Mahama, the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, and wealthy entrepreneurs such as Dr. Osei Kwame Despite, Ibrahim Mahama, and Ernest Ofori Sarpong as frequent victims of these online attacks.
“I’m pleading with President Mahama to enact a law that will jail anyone who comes on social media and uses unprintable words to insult the President or other respected individuals. Let the law jail them for one year to bring sanity,” he stated said in his impassioned appeal.
The actor did not mince words in condemning the behavior of those he described as “ordinary people with no pedigree” who use their access to cameras and internet platforms to malign and belittle prominent Ghanaians.
“People who have built businesses and employed hundreds are just insulted recklessly by those who lack proper home training. These individuals should keep their disrespectful attitudes in their homes—not bring it to the public space where they drag down people who are contributing meaningfully to national development
,” he said.
The actor also praised President Mahama’s current governance, particularly pointing to the improved performance of the Ghana cedi against the US dollar as a positive indicator of sound economic management.
“But for politics, everyone agrees that President Mahama is really working. The cedi’s strength reflects his good leadership,” he remarked.
While his proposal has sparked mixed reactions online—ranging from support for promoting online decorum to concerns about freedom of speech—the actor insists that legal consequences are necessary to stem the tide of digital disrespect.
He cited growing incidents of unprovoked verbal attacks on respected figures, including pastors and chiefs, by individuals who, in his view, lack a sense of cultural values and discipline. “I just wish there was this law to deal with them. This indiscipline online is affecting our national image and undermining respect for leadership,” he added.
