Holding Gov't Accountable

THE WESTERN Regional Director of the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), Mr. Richard Quayson has stated that journalists have nothing to apologise for if they are implementing provisions in Article 162(5) of the 1992 Constitution which mandate them to hold government or public officials accountable to the people of Ghana.

"If people are complaining because the media is holding them accountable, then there is nothing to apologize for if the exposures they are complaining about are nothing but the truth," he said.

Speaking on the topic 'Ten years of media and public accountability' at a function organized by the Western region branch of the Ghana Journalists Association to mark this year's world press freedom day in Takoradi last Friday, Quayson congratulated the Ghanaian media for speeding up the process of accountability, transparency, national integrity and good governance which, he noted, has led to the greater transparency and good governance today than we saw in 1993.

According to him, had it not been the media, Ghanaians wouldn't have known that a Gulf Stream jet had secretly been bought and quietly brought into the country by the previous NDC government.

He said it was the same media that exposed the quality grain scandal, the Keta sea defence one and the unlawful arrest and the subsequent haircut of Djentu at the Osu Castle, not forgetting the exposure of the number of children of ex-ministers and government officials whose children's fees were being paid by faceless friends.

Quayson also said under the new NPP government the press waged a relentless war against the IFC loan the government was pursuing which forced the latter to cancel the agreement.

He also mentioned the dropping of idea by the present government to sell Ghanair to their South African counterpart after the media had exposed the seemingly secret deal.

He observed that all these issues would never have seen the light of day had the press not acquitted themselves by holding the government accountable to the people.

He continued that despite all these exposures the media continued to play its watchdog role by throwing the searchlight on the present administration, which has helped to minimize wastes and mistakes as well as abuses from occurring often in the present administration.

The regional director cited as an example the dispatch with which near scandals like the Mallam Isa case, the Sahara oil case, the WAEC exam malpractices among others were nipped in the bud by the government because of the watchdog role of the media.

"Probably if the previous administration had not tried to gag or repress the media with the criminal libel law and shit bombs, but allowed it to hold them properly accountable to the people, we might have avoided some of the prosecutions going on today", he added.

Quayson did also not forget the crucial roles the media played during the 2000 general elections that were regarded as free and fair.

He said the media reported extensively on what transpired at all the polling stations and collating centres and preparing the electorate and the nation to accept the results.

The regional director of CHRAJ however said notwithstanding all these laudable achievements by the Ghana media, one sometimes gets the impression that some journalists either do not understand the high responsibility society imposes on them, or are plain reckless or mischievous.

He told the gathering that the careless abandon with which some journalists intrude on or imperil the lives of some innocent people all in the name of press freedom makes one wonder whether these journalists are not engaged in press terrorism and vandalism of innocent people.

"It is rather unfortunate that the media has attracted so much flak because of the inexcusable conduct of few practitioners who have demonstrated gross arrogance to the rights and sensitivities of others. It is no wonder that some people are becoming apprehensive of creeping media tyranny", he said.

He warned the media men that though the criminal libel law has been repealed, civil libel law which is still in our statute books is there to provide remedy at great cost to reckless media practitioners and therefore called on the media men to be circumspect in their reportage.

"You have done well, but there is great room for improvement. We do not ask you to be super-human. We only ask for decency and integrity. And you can be sure that if you do your work well, posterity including those in authority who are complaining, will be grateful to you for saving them from making mistakes" he said.

The regional director of the Ghana Tourist Board, Mr. Oti Awere who was one of the speakers, noted on his part that whatever media men write or say on the air is taken to be the gospel truth by a section of the reading or listening public. He therefore advised the media men to always cross-check their facts before going to print.