DCE drives out journalist for attempting to cross-check info

MANY A time, journalists have been unfairly accused of reporting events and occurrences without crossing-checking their facts before going to the press. A conflict between this reporter and the District Chief Executive (DCE) of the Sekyere East District has, however, presents another face to this presumption. Last Tuesday, the DCE, Mr. Isaiah Opoku Boateng rudely drove this reporter away from his office, while he was trying to ascertain the veracity of allegations leveled against him as the ethics of the profession demanded.

The DCE was accused of campaigning for the incumbent parliamentarian and former Deputy Minister of Finance, Mrs. Grace Coleman, in some communities of the Effiduase-Asokore constituency.

Opoku Boateng was said to be discrediting the other aspirants contesting the seat against his idol, saying that no one except Grace Coleman (Obaa Yaa), could work for the aspirations of the constituents and that anybody who was elected to represent them would only go to Parliament for the single purpose of understudying experienced people like Mr. Kan Dapaah, J.H. Mensah among a host of others.

Opoku Boateng has also been accused of sending light poles at night to the rural folks in an attempt to influence their decision.

Not even the disclosure by The Chronicle that the enquiries were in his favour, could calm the raging and impatient DCE down. He would simply not have anything to do with this paper because he claimed it (The Chronicle) was tearing the NPP apart in that constituency.

He asked, ?Hey tell me the last time The Chronicle came and cross-checked information from me before publishing stories about this district??

?Go and tell your source that I haven?t gone anywhere and solicited for votes on behalf of the MP, that is all,? he fumed.

The DCE flared-up when this reporter probed further. He would not want to hear anything about the allegation and said, ?I don?t know anything, period!?

Meanwhile, some supporters of the other aspirants have threatened to engage the DCE in a fierce encounter should he continue with his alleged illegal campaign.

According to them, it would be unfair for Opoku Boateng to use his office to directly or indirectly influence the decision of the electorate in the constituency and called on him to stay neutral in the up-coming NPP primaries.