Resist Social Media Ban – Ghanaians Told

THE GHANAIAN Centre of PEN International, a global association of writers promoting literature and freedom of expression, has called on all well-meaning Ghanaians to kick against the proposed ban of social media on Election Day.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) John Kudalor, sometime ago said the Police Service was thinking of banning social media on the D-Day.

“At one stage I was even saying that if it becomes critical on the eve and the Election Day we shall block all social media as other countries have done. So we are thinking about it,” he told journalists at a briefing.

The proposed ban of social media in the country has been widely condemned as very undemocratic.

PEN believes “Ghana has come far from the days of the 'culture of silence' when state apparatus, including the Police Service, were used to clamp down on the media and freedom of expression in Ghana in the 1980s under the military dictatorship.”

It argued that the fact that some people use social media for some unacceptable and illegal activities does not mean all social media are bad; in the same way one could not say the Police Service is corrupt or unprofessional simply because some police officers, including very senior ones, had either been caught in corruption or accused of that.

“We therefore, call on the IGP to completely abandon his idea of blocking the social media on Election Day because it is backwards and undemocratic,” PEN urged.

The IGP appears bent on going ahead with the ban as he reiterated his decision recently in the Eastern Region.

BY Melvin Tarlue