WITH the introduction of Meet-the-Press series and President Mills’ subsequent meeting with editors at beginning of the year, we thought politicians and the general public have also accepted the American dream that “Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” And this, we believed was enough to showcase how prepared we were as a country to safeguard the criminal libel law that was abolished during the previous regime.
YEARS after the passage of the law abrogating the law, we only thought what happened to Ato-Kwamena Dadzie in July, 2010 was nothing but an unfortunate action from the over-enthusiastic Criminal Investigations Department (CID) bent on doing the bidding of a government. Today thought Ghanaians had accepted that democracy thrives on informed citizenry, so the media was seen as important.
LITTLE did we know that the people expected to know better were not aware of the wind of change that was blowing in the world towards media freedom. At least, the behavior of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) personnel towards Gifty Lawson of the Daily Guide and two others of the same firm have portrayed how ignorant the investigative body is about the importance of the media.
AND since they have refused to accept the importance of press freedom, we seek to remind them that the freedom of press and speech are ways of finding the truth, exercising self-government, and satisfying self-expression. The media provides forums through which individuals and groups express their opinions. As governmental ‘watchdogs’ the press keeps citizens informed of governmental events and actions.
ARMED with this, was is not shameful that BNI officials harassed a photo-journalist who only committed the crime of taking a shot of a bailed CID officer already detained by the same office for more than the stipulated 24 hours? Today wants to know when it became a heinous crime to take a shot of a bailed BNI suspect when the same BNI and the security services have over the years allowed shots to be taken of bailed suspects including the almighty Tsatsu Tsikata?
CAN we conclude by this action that the laws of the country changed simply because DSP Gifty Mawunyegah Tehoda is one of their own; and did they realize that before imprisoning her for that long before producing her before a court of competent jurisdiction? If they wished by their actions to impress the family members of the DSP who had also tried a similar action the day before, then the BNI was wrong because the harm had already been caused.
FOR how long shall the BNI and other security agencies continue to push the country back to the dark days of press freedom, enough is enough, the simple truth is that Ghana can no longer take their ignorant brutalities, action should be taken on them now.
LIKE the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA) and other firms sympathetic towards the cause of journalist have demanded, the time is up for people implicated in this case to be brought to book. Ghana can no longer tolerate educated illiterates in our security agencies especially in a year when the global 24-hour surveillance camera is on Ghana.
