Kojo Oppong Nkrumah's UTV invasion statement 'wobbly, disappointing' — GJA

The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has said it is "disappointed" with Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah's "wobbly" press statement issued on the recent thuggery against UTV by some members of the governing New Patriotic Party.

The thugs, numbering about 30, disrupted a live programme on Saturday, 7 October 2023 during which they demanded representation on the programme and assaulted some staff while demanding the whereabouts of one particular regular panellist.

In a statement signed by General Secretary Kofi Yeboah, the GJA said it "finds this act barbaric and medieval, and it is very much consistent with the building blocks in recent times to establish a state of impunity against the media, one that is worse than the infamous ‘Culture of Silence’".

"We wish to inform such evil minds, both orchestrators and actors, that the media in Ghana have survived all forms of clampdown in the past, even under dictatorial regimes, and that we shall never be intimidated or silenced by any form of attack", the GJA warned.

In Mr Oppong Nkrumah's statement on the matter, he said the Ministry of Information, on Saturday, 7 October 2023, lodged a report with the Ghana Police Service to intervene in the incidentm which followed reports to the Media Monitoring Center of the Ministry that a group of people had entered UTV’s studios, allegedly without authorisation, to express displeasure at the content of a live programme.

The statement continued that "subsequently, the police arrested 16 people at the premises of UTV, and investigations are currently ongoing".

The Ministry said it "condemns, in no uncertain terms, any unauthorised entry into media organisations, in protest at media content, or interference with media work".

It said "the right to free expression and the freedom of the media are key pillars of our democracy and must be fiercely protected".

The Ministry said it "stands with the police and the courts in the conduct of their duties".

The Ministry encouraged the media, especially broadcast media show hosts and panelists, "to do their utmost to help promote national cohesion even as they exercise their fundamental freedoms".

In the GJA's statement, however, the group said, "we are highly disappointed in the Minister for issuing that wobbly statement".

"In the second paragraph of the press statement, the Minister tries to justify the barbaric attack by holding that the hooligans entered UTV 'allegedly without authorisation' when he was the very person who reported to, and called in, the police", the association said.

It noted: "In the fourth paragraph, the minister avoids direct condemnation of the hooligans and conveniently makes his condemnation general, and, worst of all, in the last paragraph, the minister imposes a burden on the media to promote national cohesion, regardless of the incessant attacks against them".

"The minister’s press statement is in sharp contrast to another one issued by the PR Unit of his Ministry on May 4, 2023, in respect of the attack on a radio presenter on Dagbon FM in Tamale by a communicator of the

National Democratic Congress (NDC)", the GJA compared.

It explained: "The ministry’s May 2023 press statement was very direct: the ministry described the attack as assault without any 'allegedly' clothing; the ministry condemned the act, specifically without giving it general direction; the ministry called for 'severe and speedy response from law enforcement agencies' to avoid future recurrence; the minister had a telephone conversation with [the] victim of assault, and the minister 'offered the support of the ministry if he will require any'".

The GJA oberved: "Between the two cases – Dagbon FM and UTV, the Minister of Information and/or the Ministry of Information, has or have not been even-handed in addressing the critical issues at stake, and we find that very worrying".

"The GJA calls on the media to be bold and never be intimidated by such acts of hooliganism, knowing that we serve the larger interest of the public", the association charged, and urged "media practitioners and institutions to act professionally at all times in the discharge of their duties".

- Classfmonline