Can Journalists keep holding public officials accountable?

In the mid-1990s, it was common to see and hear journalists discussing and talking about issues on national, international, regional and individuals who could make news.

Those days

Such times could best be described as the post media renaissance, when the living heroes such as Kwaku Baako (Abdul Malik Kwaku Baako) Kwesi Pratt Junior, Kabral Amihere, Gifty Afenyi Dadzie, Bright Blewu, Nana Apau Duah among hosts of seasoned journalists practised journalism from fearless, honest and passionate point of view for nation and profession and proudly expressed their joy in the half-chopped shoes they wore.

These Days

Today, the story of being impassionately passionate for nation through the Inky profession, and for the insistence on respect for human rights, citizens’ rights, and professional rights have been sold from conscience.

Politicians, have therefore studied the powers vested in the media as fourth estate of the realm as in Article 162 (1,2,3 and 4) and in particular (3,4). "There shall be no impediments to the establishment of private press or Media; and in particular, there shall be no law requiring any person to obtain a licence as a prerequisite to the establishment or operation of a newspaper, journal or other Media for mass communication or information.

Editors and publishers of newspapers and other institutions of the mass Media shall not be subject to control or interference by Government, nor shall they be penalized or harassed for their editorial opinions and views, or the content of their publications".

By this law, politicians marshalled intelligence to instead, not to break the daring warnings from the country's guiding book, the constitution against Journalists.

However, they have resorted to due diligence, by acting impeccably ostrich, and hiding in the shelves to sugar coat decency for members within the Inky fraternity. The voices translated in the pen, have been shut, as they are drawn by the golden opportunities displayed by politicians.

There is no gainsaying that the cardinal principles that the journalism profession and indeed Journalists are assigned within the context to discharge their job has been twisted to a 180 degree and waiting to grow more in the negative.

Arguably, the work of Journalists alone cannot bring change in tackling the wows and evils in society, even though the media play revival roles of setting agenda for positive behaviour change, in reviewing the cancerous ills of indiscipline including; corruption; which has become a bane and worry to society and country Ghana.

Politicians cannot be released from the hook on the lurking deficiencies gripping the country and its economy.

The endless chains of cited corruption and corruptible inferences, the dazzling and dashing hopes in the citizenry, the money craze, the folded moral fibre, digitalised thievery, hate and hate speeches, growing ethnocentrisms, power shouldering, greed, lies have become inch-reach and slapping left to right.

The disturbing trend

Now the Journalist; the trustee of the voiceless and hopeless, makes a wild decision to join-in the anchor of wrecking spree, making public, defenceless defences and unjustifiable justifications.

Such Journalists have been bought to remain chassis to political parties, politicians and their cohorts. They now want to talk about their car types, house type, display affluence and feel upper hand over their other colleagues who fail to be bought into the charade of mimicking glory at the expense of the job and humanity.

Today, the fraternity cannot boast of the old and traditional responsibility of harnessing and presenting a conduit to the fragile and vulnerable in society.

It takes conscience pruning, determination and hard heart to cross temptations from politicians whose intentions are to get the Journalist to their side, not necessarily to bring them votes, but to protect them from their dubious acts either to let the Journalist shut his or her beak and die within their heart or vocally raise their voices to defend the defenceless.

The trend of politicians buying and owning the media and their workers, is incredibly encouraging the art of dubious activities within fragments of the fraternity. It couldn't be surprising therefore, that, some Journalists adopt cruel and crazy methods in the discharge of their work.

The obnoxious plans by the politician not to give comfort to Journalists in the discharge of their constitutional obligations, is to continuously make them underdogs, beggars, infidels, poor and ridiculed to members of the public who generally attach respect to affluence.

The plan is effectively working and successfully detaching the Journalist from earning the respect accorded the profession and its professors. And may be that good politicians and their backers would go attacking Journalists even without provocation.

Now, some Journalists licking the boots of politicians have joined the band of liars and screaming the remits of thy kingdom come and hosanna in exchange for glorified favours.

Reputation

Activities of the bad nuts, keep compounding each day and hours, dragging the repute associated with the noble profession into the mud.

In spite of the various groupings around the profession such as the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), the PRINPAG, SWAG, where efforts are made to incite decorum, decency and respect, for members, the dribbling instincts in the politician, consistently drag the connected groupings into disarray and allow punchable soft tissues for them to successfully operate.

What about GJA?

The GJA in particular is gradually being infiltrated and assimilated by the cancerous group of politicians with their so-called interests and indeed, gradually succeeding in labeling their tags on key managers of the Association.

Some members seeking positions to manage the Association today, have one time or the other deeply been involved with a political party and delineated guiding principles in the journalism business of fair, truthful and balanced thinking.

These conscience breaking spree against the journalism profession offered and defended by these same Journalists is heartbreaking, unimaginably astonishing and unfairly degrading.

Conclusion

It is only fair that as Journalists, the various Associations connected to the profession will come out strongly with one position to unionize and acquire a collective bargaining power to speak for and negotiate on behalf of Journalists for good working conditions to cushion them well enough to reduce being traded by politicians.