Too much freedom without control is dangerous – Political scientist warns

Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Dr Kwame Asah-Asante, has warned that Ghana’s democracy could face danger if citizens fail to protect the country’s democratic values.

Speaking on JoyNews, he said democracy survives only when people defend important principles such as free speech, free media, and responsible political conduct.

“If you want to support democracy all the time, you must guard those principles carefully,” he stated.

According to him, allowing these values to weaken could push the country toward authoritarian rule.

“We could become a banana republic and authoritarian,” he cautioned.

Dr Asah-Asante explained that although freedom of speech is important, it cannot exist without limits.

“There is no right without limits,” he said. “Too much freedom can also become dangerous.”

He added that laws exist to guide human behaviour because people naturally have weaknesses that can harm society if left unchecked.

“We are corrupt, abusive and many other negative things as human beings. That is why laws are there to regulate conduct,” he explained.

The political scientist also warned against comparing wrong actions across different governments just to excuse misconduct.

“One wrong is bad enough to damage democracy,” he stressed.