Do we like John Dramani Mahama?
Our score: 3 out of 10. He has said he will sign a law that jails people over LGBTQ+ activity, with real reparations work and an unresolved conflict-of-interest petition alongside.
The Airbus saga first. UK and US court papers about an Airbus bribery case referred to a senior Ghanaian official as “Government Official 1” and “Individual 1”, and Ghana's Special Prosecutor said in August 2024 that was Mahama. The same office found no evidence he was involved or played any role in the aircraft purchase, and said it would not bring criminal proceedings. So on that one he's cleared, which is worth saying plainly.
Now the harm check, and this is where it goes sideways. In November 2025 he said he would sign the anti-LGBTQ+ bill if Parliament passed it, adding that marriage is between a man and a woman and that gender is determined at birth. Parliament passed it on 29 May 2026. It criminalises promoting or supporting LGBTQ+ activities (up to five years), same-sex acts (up to three) and failing to report them.
To be fair, he hasn't signed it as far as we can find. In early June he said it started as a private members' bill, that his legal advisers and the attorney general would review it, and that it might go to the Council of State. His defenders say the bill protects Ghanaian family values; rights groups like Human Rights Watch say it breaches basic rights and have urged lawmakers to drop it. We couldn't find anything later than June, so check that before you cheer or boo.
Then there's the mining mess. In May 2026 a private citizen petitioned Ghana's human rights and administrative justice commission to investigate Mahama, alleging a conflict of interest over a gold mine takeover by a company run by his brother. The petition also alleges Cabinet approved it and that the businessman's private jet was used for official travel. These are allegations only, the article carried no response from Mahama or the presidency, and we didn't find a finding.
The good stuff is real. As AU Champion for Reparations, Mahama tabled the African Union resolution calling the trafficking and enslavement of Africans the gravest crime against humanity, and the AU endorsed it in February 2026. He says reparatory justice “will not be handed over to us like political independence”. We also saw reporting on illegal mining and press freedom in his government, but couldn't read enough of it to weigh in here.
So where does that leave a queer reader? He's got a cleared bribery probe, a serious justice campaign for Africa's past, and an open conflict-of-interest question. Against that, he has said on the record that he'll put his name to a law that jails people over LGBTQ+ activity. That's the part that decides it here.