The Media Foundation for West Africa has condemned the action of state broadcaster Ghana Broadcasting Cooperation for failing to seek justice for its reporter who was attacked by presidential staffer Stan Dogbe.
Presidential staffer, Stan Dogbe, attacked Yahyah Kwamoah, a journalist with the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) almost a month ago at the 37 military hospital. He seized and destroyed the voice recorder of the journalist for purportedly recording a conversation that was not meant for public consumption.
The action of the presidential staffer received condemnation from notable individuals and organizations including the media foundation for West Africa who subsequently replaced the recorder and called for the dismissal of Stan Dogbe from the presidency.
Journalism Professor, Audrey Gadzekpo, called on media houses in Ghana to put pressure on President John Mahama to dismiss him.
She said in “any serious democracy, he (Stan Dogbe) would have been fired immediately.”
The MFWA in a statement issued Tuesday said the action of the state broadcaster GBC not to report on the issue and also to the police is a clear “betrayal of the kind of action that media organizations are supposed to take to build confidence in their journalists and to fight impunity over crimes against journalists.”
On the part of the presidency, the foundation noted “many people expect it, as the highest institution of the land, not to condone impunity over acts of human rights violations and violations of press freedom for that matter.”
The statement further prevailed on journalists and the media community to demand that the rights of journalists be respected and acts of impunity against journalists be fought against.
Below is the full statement
Stan Dogbe’s Attack On Journalist: GBC, Presidency Condoning Impunity?
It has been almost a month since presidential staffer, Stan Dogbe, attacked Yahyah Kwamoah, a journalist with the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC). Mr. Dogbe seized and destroyed the voice recorder of the journalist at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra.
Since the incident happened, many notable personalities, journalists and organisations have called for action to be taken against the presidential staffer as a way of demonstrating commitment to the safety of journalists and countering impunity.
The MFWA is concerned that GBC failed to report on the incident. The state broadcaster also failed to report the incident to the police despite numerous calls for such action to be taken. It rather decided to treat the matter as an internal issue.
The attitude of GBC in this matter is a betrayal of the kind of action that media organizations are supposed to take to build confidence in their journalists and to fight impunity over crimes against journalists.
On the part of the presidency, many people expect it, as the highest institution of the land, not to condone impunity over acts of human rights violations and violations of press freedom for that matter.
Since the incident happened, there has not been any evidence of a decisive action on the matter by the Presidency as one would have expected from that institution.
We call on journalists and the media community to demand that the rights of journalists be respected and acts of impunity against journalists be fought against.
By: Albert Azongo | A1RADIOONLINE.COM | Ghana
