Source: Africa Publicity
The Supreme Court of Ghana has ruled that celebrities cannot promote alcoholic beverages in the country.
In a 5-2 majority ruling in Accra on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, the Chief Justice of Ghana, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, said the 2016 directive by the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) which barred celebrities and prominent persons from appearing in advertisements that promote alcoholic beverages, does not contravene the 1992 Constitution of Ghana.
Background
It would be recalled that the Food and Drugs Authority of Ghana in 2015 introduced a directive meant to regulate the use of alcohol among Ghanaians, especially the youth. An aspect of the guidelines prohibits celebrities from advertising for alcoholic beverages.
At the time, the FDA indicated that due to the influential nature of celebrities, alcoholic advertisements they are involved in could push minors into alcoholism.
However, on November 11, 2022, Mark Darlington Osae, the manager of Reggie ‘N’ Bollie and Skrewfaze, sued the FDA at the Supreme Court, describing Authority’s 2015 directive against alcoholic advertisement of celebrities as discriminatory against the creative arts industry.
But in its ruling, the Supreme upheld the constitutionality of the FDA directive.
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