Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, the Inspector General of the Ghana Police Service
Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, the Inspector General of the Ghana Police Service, has clarified the role of the police on matters related to misinformation and disinformation.
Speaking during a panel discussion at the Ghana Report Summit in Accra on Thursday, August 1, 2024, he rebuffed accusations against the Ghana Police Service that it engages in illegal actions by arresting persons deemed to have peddled misinformation.
Dr. Dampare explained that the Ghana Police Service is not empowered to arrest persons who engage in misinformation and disinformation that do not have any ramifications on the security and safety of the country.
However, he elucidated that the police are empowered to take immediate action against anyone who peddles information that has the potential to disrupt the peace being enjoyed in the country.
“Police have not arrested anybody for fake news. What we are talking about is the law that says that if you go out there and start putting out things with the potency of bringing the security of the country into disrepute to a level that it will create confusion and for our very survival to be destroyed, we will deal with you,” he said.
Dr. Dampare also appealed to the public to collaborate with the Ghana Police Service and relevant agencies to combat misinformation and disinformation.
“Disinformation and misinformation are national security threats, and we should see them in that perspective. We should walk out of this place changed as people seeking to make a difference from these challenges that threaten the security of our nation.”
“What do we want as a people? Do we want to be on the side of right or wrong? We have to make a decision. We need everybody to be part of the solution in the fight against disinformation and misinformation. When people spread such disinformation or misinformation and you take action against them, you have some people attacking those who are fighting it.”
The IGP further stressed, “The time has come for us to have a mindset change. All the things we have said so far require a mindset change. We have become so inhumane to each other such that our happiness is derived from the pain of others. We are so happy when someone is in a bad situation, and we must yearn to change from that.”
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