Former Sekondi Anglican Bishop urges social commentators to be decorous

Takoradi, June 11, GNA 97 Former Bishop of the Sekondi Anglican Diocese, Most Reverend Andrew Okoh, has urged radio social commentators to be decent and decorous with their utterances.

He said the utterances of some social commentators' leave much to be desired, adding that if such utterance were not checked, it could result in social conflict.

The former Bishop asked moderators of radio programmes to cut-off callers, who phone-in to insult their political opponents, saying "if there is social unrest, all of us will suffer, especially children and women".

Most Reverend Bishop Okoh made the observation at a round table discussion on the topic: 93Role of the Media in Ghana's Democracy," which was organized by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) in Takoradi.

The discussion formed part of selected topics chosen by the NCCE to raise awareness on critical issues affecting the country's growth and development as the Commission celebrates its 11th Constitutional week under the theme: "The State of Ghana's Democracy 2011".

Most Rev. Bishop Okoh noted that, matters that concerned the ordinary people had been relegated to the background whilst party politics had become the order of the day on the Ghanaian media networks.

Making a contribution to the discussion, the Western Regional Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. K.K Sam suggested that hosts of morning shows should have in-depth knowledge about the topics they discuss so that they could correct panelists that erred in order not to mislead the public.

He asked moderators to give prior information about the topics to be discussed so that panelists could research on the topic and prepare adequately.

Mr Sam suggested that selection of panelists should be based on the knowledge the person had acquired on the topic, saying "if the topic is about industrialization, someone with in-depth knowledge in that field should be selected, not a politician".

This, he said, would enable the panelists to educate the public better instead of always selecting representatives of political parties.