Celebrity Alcohol Advertisement Ban: Political Analyst advocates finding a middle-ground

Acknowledging alcohol endorsements are a rich source of income for celebrities, a political analyst has also asserted it is inappropriate “for someone to lose their livelihood or life because you want to make ends meet.”

Dr. Jonathan Asante Okyere spoke to Kwame Okyere Junior (KOJ) on Accra 100.5 FM’s Entertainment Capital, on Saturday, June 22, 2024.

Resisting choosing sides, he preferred to explore the sensitivity of the issue and advocated a research and data-led dialogue so a win-win situation, perhaps, may emerge.

“I think that this must be scientifically driven,” he pleaded. “If for nothing at all, they should draw up other inferences and examples from different parts of the world, in terms of advancement of civilization, so that we’ll be able to have a middle line.”

He contended no adult wants his child, “who is under 18 years old to taste alcohol and misbehave,” however, “if you see what’s happening today, you may have to pardon the Supreme Court for such a judgement.”

He challenged the notion that after 8 PM, children are asleep so alcoholic beverages can be advertised in the media, arguing: “It’s not scientifically driven.”

In fact, he added, “There are so many things our children do that are even worse than drinking alcohol.”

Here, the Senior Lecturer, Cape Coast University (UCC), Political Science Department, admonished parents to be responsible in the upbringing of their children.

“So the point is that parents must be up there, rearing and raising their children and things they feel are not right for them, they should be there to ensure they are restricted from doing so,” he said.

“Teachers must also come on board. It’s a holistic thing altogether,” he added.

Dr. Asante Okyere said he had the impression the Supreme Court had observed a worrying trend of alcohol consumption among young people “and does not want it to go beyond a certain threshold so that we don’t regret it.”

He saw this was in parallel with the legislation against LGBTQIA+ culture.

“There’s a need for us to bring out a law to bar practices of that nature but as to how we’ll be able to get things of that nature done, only time will tell,” he said.

Addressing the plaintiff, music executive Mark Darlington Osae, he encouraged him to appeal the Supreme Court’s recent decision to uphold the Food & Drugs Authority’s guideline to prohibit celebrity-led alcohol advertisements, if he so pleases.

“They’d have to sit down [with the FDA], jaw-jaw and find a thin line because people must live,” he emphasized in conclusion.