2020 Elections Will Be A Challenging Year, Prepare — GJA Urge Journalists

The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has urged media practitioners to ready themselves to play critical roles in the upcoming general election in 2020.

In a Christmas and New Year Message, delivered in a statement in Accra, Mr. Affail Monney, the President of the GJA, said the election year would be a challenging year for the profession.

Mr. Monney said, there was the need to eschew the promotion of violence-laden acts and pursue peace, unity, and harmony with vigour and supplication.

“We particularly call on political, religious, traditional and opinion leaders to denounce violence anytime it pops up while urging their followers to stay away from same”.

The media, the statement said, must always remain independent and neutral, only leaning on the public interest at all times.

Media practitioners must, therefore, be bold and fearless in upholding the national interest and never compromise their integrity for any offer because having integrity in the media industry was priceless.

It said the New Year held many opportunities and challenges, and thus called for reflecting and exploring the opportunities and also overcoming the challenges.

The statement, however, said having made a sober reflection for this year, “the GJA wishes to appreciate and commend journalists and media practitioners in Ghana for discharging their constitutionally mandated watchdog role very effectively and efficiently”.

It urged Ghanaians to reflect soberly on the past, the present and the future with the view to living a better life by making amends for their shortfalls and reinforcing achievements, whilst making merry in the yuletide