GJA laptops from Media Fund must be probed - MFWA

The Media Foundation of West Africa is asking the GJA and other Media groups to account for the laptops which they received from the Information Ministry.

This comes a day after the Minister for Information and Media Relations Wednesday, told parliament, the 1 million cedis 2012 allocation of the fund had been disbursed.

According to the Minister, Mahama Ayariga after a series of consultations with stakeholders in the industry, it emerged that journalists needed laptops to enhance performance, which were provided from the fund.

He told parliament that majority of the over 900 laptops were given to the Ghana Journalists Association for distribution.

But the Programs Coordinator of the Media Foundation for West Africa Suleimana Braimah in an interview with XYZ News said, these claims must be properly investigated.

Also, the Executive Director of the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association, Gerald Ankrah has stated that they have not received any laptops from any Ministry.

“Our priorities are not laptops and we don’t remember discussing with the Minister that Media development fund must be disbursed,” Mr. Ankrah.

“When this issue came up and we issued a press release that GIBA has not discussed it and for that matter we haven’t anything and we don’t intend receiving anything”.

In 2011, then Vice president John Mahama announced government’s plans to set up a Media Development Fund (MDF), after which the then Finance Minister, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, in his presentation of the 2012 budget to parliament, announced that Gh¢1million has been allocated to the Fund.