The Mahama-led administration has pledged to partner with the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) to curb the growing incidents of attacks on journalists and to strengthen media safety nationwide.
Speaking at the launch of the GJA Awards in Accra, Minister of State in Charge of Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, said the government is committed to fostering a safer working environment for journalists through stronger collaboration with media stakeholders and security agencies.
“There are sections of our society who continue to view the media as nosy and people who should not get close to their activities. And therefore, I want to abuse the rights of media practitioners. Thankfully, in more recent times, we’ve not heard of such reports. That is because firm instructions have been issued to all state security agencies to reform the way in which they relate to the media, and to show a bit more courtesy than we are doing at the moment,” he said.
Mr. Ofosu further noted that President Mahama’s government remains open to dialogue and cooperation with the GJA to promote press freedom and professional excellence.
“Mahama and the cabinet that he leads is willing to work closely with the GJA to ensure that this unhealthy development is stemmed and that it does not decay, even as we make more progress to advance the frontiers of media freedoms,” he assured.
He emphasized that his ministry operates an open-door policy to allow for constructive engagement with journalists, adding that “after all, we are partners.”
The ceremony also marked the inauguration of a nine-member committee to vet entries for the upcoming GJA Awards.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
