A private legal practitioner has cautioned Professor Ransford Gyampo against pursuing his threatened defamation lawsuit against Dr. George Domfeh, warning that court action could backfire and expose the academic to further scrutiny. The lawyer made the statement during an appearance on Afia Pokua’s Gyaso Gyaso show on Okay FM on November 17, 2025.
The lawyer argued that litigation might prove costly for Professor Gyampo given what he described as sensitive history surrounding his name. He suggested that Dr. Domfeh and his supporters could use the court proceedings to revisit past issues, potentially encouraging alleged victims to come forward with testimony. The warning comes amid escalating tensions between the two University of Ghana (UG) academics following their heated confrontation on TV3’s The Key Points programme.
Professor Gyampo, who serves as Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Shippers Authority, has already initiated formal legal action through his lawyers at Darko, Keli-Delataa & Company. In a letter dated November 16, 2025, Dr. Domfeh was instructed to retract his statement within 24 hours and issue a public apology on the same platform where the allegedly defamatory comment was made.
The legal notice states that what began as policy and intellectual disagreements became offensive, insulting and deeply defamatory. According to the solicitors, Dr. Domfeh’s remark during the November 15, 2025 broadcast was widely interpreted by viewers as suggesting that Professor Gyampo engages in inappropriate conduct with underage girls. The lawyers characterized this as not only reckless but patently false and malicious.
The lawyers emphasized that the allegation severely damages Professor Gyampo’s reputation as a respected academic and national thought leader, especially considering the prominence of TV3 as a platform. They insisted that any satisfactory apology must be delivered on a similarly prominent platform hosted by the same media organization.
However, the lawyer on Gyaso Gyaso believes both academics and their legal representatives mishandled the situation from the start. He suggested that the matter could have been resolved through quiet negotiation rather than escalating to formal legal threats. The practitioner drew parallels with recent high profile disputes, noting that many conflicts could be avoided if lawyers facilitated direct discussions between parties rather than immediately threatening litigation.
The controversy stems from an on air clash between the two academics on November 15, 2025, when a policy discussion deteriorated into personal attacks. Dr. Domfeh accused Professor Gyampo of political bias and questioned his conduct during his tenure as president of the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) at UG. Professor Gyampo responded by challenging Dr. Domfeh’s professional standing as an academic.
Videos circulating on social media show the confrontation escalating to near physical violence, with production staff intervening to separate the two men. Dr. Domfeh made additional unverified allegations during the altercation that sparked widespread condemnation from the academic community and social media users who viewed the conduct as unbecoming of senior university lecturers.
Professor Gyampo is a Political Science professor and founding director of the Centre for European Studies at UG with 20 years of teaching and research experience. He was elected UTAG president at UG in August 2023 with 93.3 percent of votes after serving as general secretary. President John Dramani Mahama appointed him Acting CEO of the Ghana Shippers Authority in January 2025, replacing Kwesi Baffour Sarpong who was appointed under the previous administration.
Following the incident, Professor Gyampo took to social media to thank supporters who praised his restraint during the confrontation. He vowed that those who allegedly destroyed the country would not be allowed to frustrate those working to reset it, suggesting the clash had political undertones related to broader governance debates.
Dr. Domfeh has also publicly responded to the controversy, accusing TV3 of selectively editing the broadcast footage. He claimed the media house omitted portions showing Professor Gyampo allegedly getting up from his seat and attempting to advance toward him. Dr. Domfeh questioned TV3’s editorial motives and expressed disappointment that what he considers crucial context was excluded from the publicly released video.
The lawyer’s warning introduces a new dimension to the dispute by suggesting that formal legal proceedings could open doors Professor Gyampo may prefer to keep closed. By cautioning against litigation, the legal practitioner implies that an amicable settlement might better serve both academics’ interests despite the public nature of their confrontation.
The incident has sparked broader discussions about professional conduct among Ghana’s academic elite, media responsibility in broadcasting contentious exchanges, and the appropriate mechanisms for resolving disputes between public intellectuals. Many observers have expressed disappointment that two senior academics resorted to insults rather than maintaining intellectual discourse standards expected at their level.
As the 24 hour deadline set by Professor Gyampo’s lawyers passes, attention now focuses on whether Dr. Domfeh will comply with the retraction demand, whether Professor Gyampo will proceed with litigation despite the warning, or whether both parties might still pursue the quiet settlement approach recommended by the lawyer on Gyaso Gyaso.
