Hopeson Adorye, a prominent member of the Movement for Change, has been granted bail by the Dansoman court set at GH¢20,000 with two sureties. This decision came following his arrest and court appearance on Thursday, May 23, 2024.
Adorye’s arrest stemmed from his incendiary comments during an interview on Accra FM, where he alleged that dynamite blasts in the Volta Region were used to intimidate voters in opposition strongholds. “Prior to the elections, we blasted dynamite in parts of the Volta Region, and that scared a number of people,” Adorye claimed. He further asserted that this tactic significantly decreased voter turnout, ultimately benefiting the NPP. “After casting my ballot in Tema, I drove to the Volta Region. When I asked for the number of people who had voted and the expected number of voters, it turned out people did not come out to vote.”
These allegations have sparked widespread condemnation from the public and notable figures. Broadcaster Kwame Sefa Kayi, host of Peace FM’s Kokrokoo show, was among those calling for Adorye’s immediate arrest and a thorough investigation into his claims.
During the Accra FM interview, Adorye indicated that by 2 p.m. on the day of voting, the turnout in the Volta Region was notably low, which he interpreted as a sign of reduced support for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in their stronghold.
Former Member of Parliament for Adentan, Yaw Buaben Asamoa, described the arrest as politically motivated. He suggested that the police might be acting on instructions from higher authorities, implying that the decision was not solely theirs. “Because if Hopeson has been up and running and there are people who are feeling a little edgy and jittery about some of the things he has been saying. And this is a way of muscling him, trying to frighten the movement for change, it won’t work. I believe strongly that it’s politically motivated,” Buaben Asamoa remarked.
Adorye’s claims, made on a popular Accra-based radio station, have since gone viral, intensifying the debate and scrutiny surrounding his arrest and the allegations of voter intimidation during the 2016 General Elections.
