The Minister for Communication, Digitalization Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, has reaffirmed the government’s stance on social media regulation, clarifying that there is no policy or intention to shut down or clamp down on social media pages.
His remarks come amid concerns raised in Parliament over recent restrictions faced by some users, particularly by members of the opposition.
During a session in Parliament, Nana Asafo Adjei, the Member of Parliament for Bosome Freho, questioned the minister about reports of Meta (formerly Facebook) restricting certain accounts operated by NPP activists.
The MP highlighted issues where accounts and posts are reportedly being pulled down without prior notice, raising fears of censorship.
In response, Minister Nartey George categorically stated that the Cyber Security Authority, under the administration of President John Dramani Mahama, has no interest in silencing dissent or criticism.
“Right Honourable Speaker, the Cyber Security Authority has absolutely no interest in clamping down on dissenting voices or criticisms of the government,” he said.
He emphasized that the authority does not possess the capacity to control or shut down social media pages independently.
The minister explained that account restrictions and content removals are actions taken solely by the platform owners themselves.
“We have actually no policy of clamping down or shutting down pages. In fact, the Cyber Security Authority of Ghana has no control over the platforms and does not have the ability to shut down pages on their own,” he emphasized.
He clarified that when a post is taken down on platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or others, it is based on the platforms’ community standards, not a directive from Ghanaian authorities.
“All account shutdowns are conducted by the platform owners,” Nartey George asserted.
“If a post is taken down on Instagram or Facebook by META, that’s done by META’s own community standards. It means that the content of that post breached the community standards. That is not an activity of the Cyber Security Authority. If a post is taken down on TikTok, again, that will be done by ByteDance. That is not controlled. Those platforms are not controlled by the Cyber Security Authority,” he explained.
He took the opportunity to educate the public, affirming that the government does not exercise control over social media content or accounts. “This question provides us with a chance to clarify that the government bears no responsibility for removing social media accounts or posts,” he said.
Reaffirming Ghana’s commitment to freedom of expression, Minister Nartey George concluded by emphasizing that the Mahama administration remains open to criticism, whether constructive or otherwise.
“President Mahama’s government is extremely liberal and open to criticism,” concluding he added, “We respect freedom of speech and do not intend to restrict social media activity in any way.”
Source: www.Kumasimail/Kwadwo Owusu
