The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has warned persons who have the tendency to attack journlaists to desist from the practice.
The President of the Association, Mr Albert Dwumfuor, said the Association will retaliate in egual measure if this practice persists.
The GJA President said this in reaction to a reported attack on the host of the Morning Show on Cape-Coast-based Cape FM, David Kobena.
“At the Central Regional vetting of parliamentary aspirants of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), held at the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) in Cape Coast, some thugs, numbering about 15 and wearing a branded T-shirt of Mavis Hawa Koomson, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Awutu-Senya East, pounced on David Kobbena, a morning show host of Cape FM, and beat him mercilessly without provocation.
David Kobbena, aka Ohene Kwame David, was said to be sitting under a shed at the RCC. The thugs mistook him for another person they alleged had insulted the MP, who is also the Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture Development. On the basis of that mistaken identity, a man believed to be a police officer invited the unsuspecting David to a distance and sought to confirm that mistaken identity. David denied it and produced his media house ID Card as evidence to support his denial. But in the process of doing so, someone slapped him from behind and other thugs joined in the assault, beating him mercilessly,” he recounted at a press conference held on January 8.
Constitution Day: GJA commends Ghanaians for contributing to nurturing democracy
Mr Dwumfuor warned that, “as we have already served notice, we shall fight back with every weapon we can marshal in our industry to repel the attacks on journalists as we go into Election 2024. And we can assure the evil plotters and doers that they cannot fight the media and win. We want to assure the media fraternity that we shall continue to defend their interests at all costs. This year, we shall continue our campaign against the obnoxious law used for criminal prosecution of free speech. We know they would be used as part of the strategy to silence the media but we shall resist them with all force.”
He noted that, “This is the height of impunity and we can no longer tolerate same. While condemning the attack on David unreservedly, we make the following demands:
- The NPP, at the regional and national levels, must investigate the matter immediately and identify the culprits.
- The NPP, at the regional and national levels, must sanction the perpetrators of the assault on David.
- The Ghana Police Service should investigate the incident immediately and speedily in order to prosecute the culprits.
- The Ghana Police Service investigate and identify the purported police officer who invited David before he was assaulted and bring him to face sanctions for unprofessional conduct.”
The Association served notice that if by close of Friday, January 12, 2024, these demands have not been met, “we shall advice ourselves accordingly.”
Meanwhile, the GJA advised journalists and media practitioners to be extremely vigilant whilst discharging their duties.
“We urge them to report any iota of threat to their person to the police for the necessary action to be taken,” the GJA President stated.