The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) is calling for the repeal of Section 208 of the Criminal Offenses Act, Act 1960. A portion of the Act states that:
“Any person who publishes or reproduces any statement, rumour, or report which is likely to cause fear and alarm to the public or disturb the public peace, knowing or having reason to believe that the statement, rumour, or report is false, is guilty of a misdemeanour.”
The General Secretary of the GJA, Mr. Kofi Yeboah, made this appeal while addressing journalists at an event on Credible Elections Reporting 2024 in Kumasi. He argued that the Act undermines free speech.
Mr. Yeboah’s comments follow recent arrests of journalists under this provision, including Wontumi FM’s Oheneba Asiedu, who was apprehended for allegedly broadcasting false information. It is claimed that he encouraged voters to cast their ballots for presidential candidates on different days during the upcoming December general elections.
While condemning Oheneba Asiedu’s alleged unprofessional conduct, Mr. Yeboah emphasized the dangers of criminalizing speech. He stated:
“Even as we condemn those utterances in no uncertain terms, we also don’t support the actions of the police in criminalizing speech. There should be no way we criminalize speech. We have had issues with the police abusing this provision of the Criminal Offenses Act, Section 208 of Act 1960. The National Media Commission is there—it is the regulator of the industry. If we don’t check these things, it is obvious the police will continue abusing this law. There are instances where some people have said worse or similar things, and the police did not pursue them.”
“But when it’s a journalist, they go after them because journalists do not have political associations to mobilize people to the police stations. We condemn Oheneba Asiedu’s utterances, but we don’t support criminalizing speech. We are forming an immediate team, including the Media Foundation for West Africa, GJA, and GIBA, to find ways to address this issue. We want Section 208 of the Criminal Offenses Act, 1960, and Section 26 of the Electronic Communications Act repealed. We will mount pressure to get those laws amended.”
The GJA, in collaboration with the Electoral Commission of Ghana, organized a training workshop for journalists in the northern zone, covering Ashanti, Bono, Savannah, Northern, North East, Upper East, and Upper West regions. The initiative aims to equip journalists with the relevant knowledge to report credibly before, during, and after the 2024 general elections.
The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Osei Nsiah, urged journalists to ensure impartiality and accuracy in their reporting.
He also cautioned against the premature declaration of election results, emphasizing that all figures obtained by journalists are provisional until officially declared by the Electoral Commission.
Source: A1Radioonline.Com | 101.1MHz | Samuel Adagom | Kumasi
