Editorials

“Our right to know” is how the Daily Graphic titles its editorial. The paper quotes Malcolm X, who says, “The media is the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent and that's the power, because they control the minds of the masses. According to the Graphic, the media's role in democratic governance is acknowledged worldwide. It is in this light, that the paper commends the institute of Economic Affairs, IEA for providing the platform for media practitioners and politicians to assess their roles in deepening democracy. Even as people argue for tougher laws to regulate the media landscape, the Daily Graphic believes, it will be a tragedy to return to the days of the culture of silence, because journalists have decided to exercise their freedom without responsibility. The paper urges Journalists to step back and reflect on their work, because stocktaking will determine whether they should continue with the old ways or make amends.


The Ghanaian Times sends a word of caution to Non Governmental Organizations in the country who sends allegations of child labour in cocoa growing areas to their European and American financiers for support. It notes that such NGO's must go the extra mile of thoroughly investigating their claims. The paper considers as unfortunate the painstaking effort by the Vice President John Mahama yesterday to convince International NGO's that there are no cases of child labour in cocoa growing areas. The Times commends the Vice President for clearing the air on misinterpretation of the social phenomenon of rural life, where children assist their parents on the farm that these allegations be monitored properly before a possible ban is placed on the importation of Ghana's cocoa.