Stakes in 2020 elections incredibly high – Affail Monney

The president of the Ghana Journalists Association, Mr. Affail Monney has charged journalists to ensure that peace is preeminent in whatever they write or say.

Describing the upcoming general elections as a “titanic electoral battle”, he said journalists must position themselves to provide fair and balanced reportage devoid of anything that can scuttle the peace Ghanaians are enjoying.

He was speaking at the launch of Media General’s Election Command Centre in Accra on Tuesday. Election Command Centre is the media conglomerate’s way of providing trusted, reliable and credible coverage of the forthcoming 2020 general elections across radio, TV and online.

“About four years ago, we were shackled by fear as a nation and afflicted by doubt – fear about media induce violence or war, and doubt about the ability of the media to do justice to the professional mettle – it took the grace of God for us to excel,” Mr. Monney recalled.

“Here we are again, 2020, the stakes are incredibly high and we are expected to do nothing but to match up to the expectations.”

He commended Media General for launching the Election Command Centre as part of its peace initiative and implored other media houses to do same because “it would not take TV3 alone to catch the worm of peace or to catch the worm of peaceful conduct of election 2020”.

Urging journalists to position themselves professionally, psychologically and spiritually to rise to the occasion, Mr. Monney said journalists sieve statement from politicians in order not to communicate their “blatant lies” to the populace.