The President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr. Albert Kwabena Dwufour, has called on the Interior Minister, Ambrose Dery, to act swiftly on the recent attacks that have been meted out to three journalists by security personnel.
According to the GJA President, the Interior Minister must act swiftly on these attacks just as he did in his reaction to the leaked tape on the Inspector General of Police (IGP).
Addressing a news conference in Accra on Tuesday, this week, Dwufour complained about how some senior immigration officers pointed a gun on the Upper West Regional Chairman of the GJA, Sualah Abdul-Wahab, and threatened his life on June 20, 2023, without any provocation at an Immigration Check-Point at Naro in the Nadowli-Kaleo District.
He continued that “the GJA finds the conduct of the Immigration officers to be highly unprofessional and gross misconduct, which warrant severe sanctions.”
He said the GJA, as part of its action plans, had already petitioned the Comptroller General of the Ghana Immigration Service, Mr. Takyi Assuah, and copied the Interior Minister to investigate the incident and sanction the officers involved where necessary to serve as a deterrent to others.
The GJA President also mentioned another incident which, he said, happened a few weeks ago at Obuasi, in the Ashanti Region, where some miners were trapped in a mine pit. In the aftermath of that disaster, the Ashanti Regional Correspondent of GTV, Nicholas Osei-Owusu, was attacked by some soldiers while covering the incident. The only offence was videoing a warning-shooting spree being carried out by the soldiers to disperse a mob on the premises of the Obuasi Central Police Station.
These acts by the military against a journalist, who was carrying out his constitutionally mandated duty, can pass for terrorism against the Journalist and journalism in this country.
He further said the GJA has petitioned the military hierarchy and are waiting for an urgent response, with demands that include thorough investigations on the matter and sanctioning the culprits appropriately.
The third incident he said happened in Ashaiman, where Angel FM’s Tema Regional Correspondent, Augustine Ahiabor, was assaulted and his phone smashed by residents of Ashaiman Lebanon Zone 2, just for taking pictures of a toilet facility in a compound that had collapsed on people.
According to the GJA president, “It is obvious that our press freedom environment is deteriorating seriously and it is our view therefore that, efforts to bring a positive change should begin from authorities, in sanctioning people who commit atrocities against Journalists and media practitioners.”
He also called on the government to adequately resource the National Media Commission (NMC) to effectively carry out its mandate of monitoring and regulating media content in a proactive manner.
“We will not hesitate to call out any journalist or media organisation that indulges in flagrant violation of the professional ethics and standards.”
He assured all the victims of these unwarranted attacks that the organisation will follow through the petitions submitted, and make sure that justice is served.
