Leading New Patriotic Party (NPP) member and lawyer, Gabby Otchere-Darko, has thrown his support behind Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin over remarks made concerning a judge linked to the arrest of Abronye DC, insisting that leadership must not shy away from defending rights and justice.
In a strongly worded statement, Otchere-Darko argued that true leadership demands courage, especially when matters involve human rights and the integrity of the legal system.
“Leadership requires courage. Timidity can never be a leadership option,” he stated.
According to him, Afenyo-Markin acted appropriately by publicly questioning what he described as troubling judicial conduct in the case, adding that silence in such moments could undermine public confidence in justice delivery.
“I doff my hat to Alexander Afenyo-Markin for taking on the judge,” he said.
Otchere-Darko further cautioned against reducing the controversy to a political battle between the NPP and the National Democratic Congress (NDC), stressing that the broader issue concerns freedom of expression and due process in Ghana’s democracy.
He warned that actions perceived as targeting speech could create fear among ordinary citizens, especially at a time when social media has become a major platform for public expression among young people.
“Today it may be a political activist. Tomorrow it could be a journalist, a student, a taxi driver, or any ordinary Ghanaian,” he noted.
While acknowledging that the law must deal decisively with wrongdoing, Otchere-Darko insisted that enforcement should never come at the expense of fundamental rights and fair legal processes.
“Let the law deal firmly with those who fall foul of it,” he said. “But it must never compromise fundamental human rights.”
He concluded by stressing that public trust in the judiciary depends not only on justice being delivered, but also on citizens clearly seeing that justice is fair, impartial, and transparent.
