Ms. Audrey Gadzekpo, a Journalism Professor at the School of Communications, University of Ghana, is urging members in the inky fraternity to on daily basis call on President John Dramani Mahama to “fire” one of his staffers, Stan Dogbe, for assaulting a journalist who was in the line of duty.
“We can take a cue from what Aljazeera did when their journalists were imprisoned and up till have not been released – every single day the media should repeat the call on the President to sanction Stan Dogbe … in fact, don’t say sanction because it makes it a very vain statement … fire him because he has violated the basics of respects for the press by attacking a journalist,” she fumed.
Presidential Staffer, Stan Dogbe, is accused of destroying the recorder of Yahaya Kwamoah, a Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) reporter at the 37 Military Hospital.
The reporter had been at the hospital to report on an accident involving the Presidential Press Corps (PPC) in which one of the journalists, Samuel Nuamah who was a reported for the Ghanaian Times, lost his life.
The body of the deceased had been deposited at the morgue of the hospital facility while several others who sustained various degrees of injuries were receiving treatment.
Yahaya Kwamoah was said to have recorded a conversation between Stan Dogbe and Communications Minister, Dr. Omane Boamah, who were then strategizing to inform the public about the incident.
In a telephone interview on News File Saturday, over the conduct of the Presidential Staffer, the journalism Professor said in any “serious” democratic country, Stan Dogbe would have been released from his post immediately after the incident.
“This will not be a case for debate. He will be fired immediately because he speaks on behalf of the President. He represents the President and the President should ask himself what does it say about my commitment to press freedom if my presidential staffer who is supposed to liaise with journalists himself attacks journalists for whatever reason?
She said even if Yahama Kwamoah erred by invading the privacy of the two state actors, there are processes as spelt out by the constitution of the land, he could have explored to have the matter addressed.
By: Kasapafmonline.com/Ghana
