The 2024 presidential candidate of the People’s National Party (PNP), Janet Asana Nabla, has accused President John Dramani Mahama of pretending to be compassionate while allegedly using state institutions to suppress critics.

Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio on September 30, Nabla said the President’s public image did not reflect what she described as the actions of his administration.

“President Mahama pretends to be a compassionate person through his public speeches, but all these are just for public show. He is a treacherous person with his heart filled with evil. He is manipulative and has no sense of compassion, like he makes it appear. When the President speaks, he appears to be like a saint, but his heart and soul are all dark,” she said.

Nabla was reacting to a “Women’s Voices Matter” protest in Accra over the arrest and detention of Salomey Awity Baffoe, a 40-year-old senior nursing officer and mother of three from Techiman.

The protesters condemned what they described as unlawful arrests and state-sponsored injustice, while raising concerns about free speech and women’s rights.

Nabla alleged that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government was using state security agencies to intimidate and silence critical female voices.

“There are several women with cases currently pending before the High Court who are facing very difficult times. These arrests are happening because the government wants to silence the voices of women,” she said.

She also accused the NDC of reintroducing what she described as a “culture of silence”, arguing that Mahama and his party had strongly criticised previous governments while in opposition without facing similar treatment.

Nabla further questioned Mahama’s recent public disapproval of the arrests of political commentators, describing his comments as political optics.

“Our question to President John Dramani Mahama is whether we are under a military regime. Are we under military rule? If former President Akufo-Addo had arrested you and your NDC people like you are doing today, would you have liked that?” she asked.

She urged Ghanaians not to be misled by what she described as the President’s calm demeanour.