Editor in Chief with The Fourth Estate, an online news platform, Manasseh Azure Awuni says claims by some persons in government including the president of the Ghana Journalist Association that Citi FM’s Caleb Kudah erred by going to the National Security Installation to film is not true
In an interview with Word FM, a Bolgatanga based radio station morning show host Simon Agana on Thursday, 13, 2021, Mr. Azure said the action of Citi FM’s Journalist Caleb Kudah was justified and in the interest of the state and does not in any way breach any law.
On Tuesday 11, 2021, Caleb Kudah, a Broadcast Journalist with Citi FM and Citi TV was arrested by officers of the National Security within their premises after he was seen filming some cars parked at the premises of the national security ministry. subsequently, Some supposed national security personnel armed to the teeth stormed Citi FM’s premises to pick his colleague, Zoe Abu-Baidoo, whom they claim Caleb had transferred some files to. The two journalist were eventually released same day but, Mr. Kudah alleged that he was physically abused.
While many people on social media and main stream media were worried and condemned the actions by the National Security, the GJA President Mr. Roland Affail Monney in an interview on Joy FM said the Journalist’s action amounted to a breach of the Association’s code of ethics.
“Caleb erred, as far as our ethics is concerned. He clearly breached the ethics relative to Article 13 of our own Code of Ethics which specifies that journalists should take pictures through fair, straight forward and honest means unless tampered by national interest. His interest here is not so clear. From the face of it, we believe he erred.”
But, the Ace investigative Journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni violently disagrees: ‘’I don’t know what he means by his motive is not clear, if there is anyone whose motive should be questioned then that should be the GJA president and not the Journalist. When you look at what happened, we know that the Journalist put out some information and the government people came out and said he was lying so he had to delete it and had to come back and apologise, and then he goes to this same facility where some of these cars were parked and he sees them still parked there. So the best thing to do is to take the evidence and the people who are denying are certainly not going to allow him to take the pictures to come and discredit them so at that moment, you only have to use the means that they are not aware that you are taking the evidence, this is a when you can use a means either than the straight forward means to get the information and it is provided for in the GJA code of Ethics. He did it in the national interest. The vehicles were bought with our money (the tax payer) and parked in there so it was in the national interest so what the GJA president said is neither here nor three.’’
Mr.Monney have subsequently rendered an unqualified apology today, 14th May,2021, to the two Journalist for the ‘misimpression’ that his comments had been carried.
‘’As a student of leadership, I have learned that a leader is not afraid to change course when confronted with fresh information which challenges his earlier assumptions. As I indicated, the information I had before the interview was scanty. What is available now is sufficient, as legal luminaries, distinguished ethicists and social critics slice and dice the issue from all angles.It is healthy for a free society such as ours for viewpoint diversity to be manifestly venerated, not maliciously castigated. I also take note of the righteous indignation and emotional overdrive over the issue. I, therefore, render my sincerest apology for any misimpression created that I was insensitive to the plight of the journalists but excited about the excesses by the National Security operatives. Indeed, those excesses pass for wickedness at its most naked nastiness. And I totally denounce them.’’
In two separate post on Facebook a social media platform on Firday May 14,2021 Mr. Azure recounts a similar incident in 2015 were the GJA President discredited a Journalist’s account and later had to apologise.
Mr. Awuni said: ‘’GJA President Affail Monney has apologised for saying Caleb Kudah broke the GJA Code of Ethics in filming abandoned MASLOC vehicles parked at the National Security yard. He apologised in 2015 when I interviewed him and he said he believed the Chief of Staff’s account and not the account of his own reporter who was part of the presidential press corps accident.’’
In all of this what the public is calling for is for some investigation into the matter and justice for the Journalists.
By: Wisdom Adekurah/mywordfmonline.com