Ghanaian Journalists dying slowly

Charles Takyi-Boadu writes
katakyie@gmail.com, okofotakyi@yahoo.com
In recent times, many have complained about the falling standards in the theory and practice of journalism in Ghana.
Genuine as the concerns may be, I believe most of the arguments that have been advanced have been cluttered by mere speculations and hearsays.
Whatever the case may be, there is an underlying factor to this debate which Ghanaians especially most of those who advance arguments against or for the issue in contention easily gloss over through no fault of theirs.
Having practiced journalism for the past five years or so has given me a fair opportunity to make an assessment of the Ghanaian media landscape which I am part of.
There appears to be a growing trend of dishonesty, greed, self-centeredness and selfishness in the practice of journalism in the country, which I believe to a large extent, is contributing to the fall in standard of journalism practice.
Much as I agree that there are a lot of quack journalists in the system, I also know and to a large extent believe that their very existence have been given a boost by the sheer negligence of some media owners, most of who do not want to invest in quality.
As a result, every Tom, Dick and Harry can just wake up from his slumber and assume the role of a journalist in no less a time without any pre-requisite skill in the theory and practice of journalism.
Though I respect the views of people like Accra-based legal practitioner, Yonny Kulendi who believe journalism is not a profession but a vocation, I don’t subscribe to the belief and the school of thought which says that everybody and anybody at all can get up an say he is a journalist, especially when he or she does not have any rudimentary knowledge about the basic ethics of the profession.
But the issue of the falling standards in journalism practice in Ghana is one that goes beyond mere rhetoric’s and talk-shops.
Unlike other countries, journalism practice in Ghana has been reduced to naught, where the journalists’ only pride rests in his or her by-line, his or her voice on air and his or her face on the screens of our television sets at home.
In true sense, this is not what journalism is all about, neither is it the way it was meant and supposed to be.
I know and have seen very senior and respected journalists in this country who have passed on to glory under very deplorable conditions.
Having had the opportunity to attend courses relating to the journalism in Asia and Europe has given me a fair idea of what and how journalism practice is really like.
It thus appears that here in Ghana, we take journalism for granted, forgetting the power vested in us by the very foundations of our constitution.
Though journalism practice the world over is not a paid job but as some have branded a ‘thanking’ job, unlike other professionals like accountants, auditors, lawyers, doctors etc. I have seen journalists in other country’s living what can be described as average and comfortable lives as compared to those of us here in Ghana.
I remember discussing my salary with some colleague journalists from the war-ravaged and transition country, Afghanistan when I was on a course in India.
I bet your wondering that these guys laughed it off upon hearing how much I end at the end of each passing month.
They could not fathom how I was surviving on such paltry salary and yet took so much pride in the fact that I was a ‘Senior Staff Reporter’ of my media house.
Considering my experience in the practice of journalism and having seen some of my stories and write-ups, they said I would have been well off in their country for the simple reason that even they who were green horns in the profession were earning better salaries than myself.
Aside that, they are given spending allowances whenever they have to travel outside their country to attend courses which will inure to the benefit of their employers.
After interacting with other colleagues on the same course, I realised the situation cut across board among other colleagues from Ethiopia, Tanzania, Nepal, Mauritius, Uzbekistan, and Yemen except for one or two countries whose journalists were living in conditions similar to those of Ghanaians.
I can thus say without fear of any contradiction whatsoever that majority of media owners in Ghana are over-exploiting their staff.
It will interest you to know that there are many journalists in Ghana who comb the length and breadth of the country and the streets and pavements of Accra and beyond in search of stories yet they earn less than hundred Ghana cedis or a little over that.
Don’t laugh! This is no joke. It is a serious issue, which should see the fathers and founders of journalism turning in their graves and thus have to engage the attention of you and me if we indeed want to help improve the falling standards of journalism practice in the country.
Yet the few of us who stand up to fight for structured conditions of service and our rights to either good or better conditions of service are branded as unionists and agitators and victimised for speaking our minds.
I have come to realise that journalism is either one of the worse or the worse profession in Ghana today for the simple reason that it is the only profession which practitioners so much pride themselves on fighting for the rights of others but yet cannot fight to salvage themselves from the whims of fear.
Most media owners in this country have virtually become demi-gods and tyrants who must be feared at all cost and whose positions are not to be challenged, no matter how crooked and weird they may be.
Their disposition are those of vampires of a ruling elite whose parochial interest is to fill their bellies and line their pockets with the toils and sweat of others who fall prey to their antics.
These are the very people who do not allow the growth of journalism with a better agenda setting, but consider politics as the only news that sells on the stands and would not allow any other thing apart from that on their front pages.
For them, the concept of development journalism or agenda setting is not part of their vocabulary since they believe you should ‘seek ye first the political kingdom and all other things shall be added’.
I remember trying to introduce or better still implement ‘development journalism’ as a concept in my media house but was told in the face that if I want to put this into practice then I better my way out, for the simple reason that political stories fetch more money.
The question I want to ask owners of most of the country’s media houses most of whose content are so politically inclined who said development-oriented stories don’t sell.
It is a hoax to believe in this kind of sceptism and fallacy since it has no basis, so they should stop making a whole faux of this whole idea and move forward; for it only takes a confident businessman to make a bold decision to venture into an unknown territory.
Personally, I find it is extremely difficult to renege on the principles on which I opted to practice journalism as a profession.
This conviction goes way beyond mere monetary consideration since I cannot trade my consciences for money.
The quest to get thing done in the right way is what has inspired some of us to this day, either than that appalling and prevailing conditions in the profession would have compelled us to join the fray of ‘business journalism’.
My only pride is the fact that I always stand and live for these principles which only a few of today’s journalists can uphold, but I don’t blame them though, considering the poor conditions under which they live.
However, I don’t think the condition under which one lives should make him to compromise his conscience that much for monetary since every journalist have but his name and image to hang on and protect.
I stand for these principles and would find it extremely difficult to allow monetary considerations to influence or colour my decision-making.
What many of those of us in the practice of journalism do not know is the power that we wield and the fact that we can effect changes in society.
We are sometimes made to believe that we are just passing through the system hence would compromise everything, including the only asset that we have, our conscience, in exchange for money.
But what I want to tell all Ghanaian journalists is for them to remain resolute and not be cowed and intimated by fears and threats of dismissals or demotion long as their certificates are still intact because the truth pains but it really pays to say as it is.
I therefore throw an open challenge to all journalists, stakeholders in the industry and especially media owners to gird their loins and brace themselves to the tenets of the profession and the tests of time since journalism is indeed a noble profession.
The next time you see somebody on you television set, don’t mistaken him for a rich man for he or she may be reeling under the shadows of poverty.
I live the rest of the debate for the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and all other persons and institutions who recognise the essence and value of this profession.
May the good lord save us all from the reels and shadows of the ravaging wind of poverty, which is sweeping across the spectrum without mercy.
I rest my case.

Rawlings visits Castle

…To brief Mills on his South Africa trip

Posted: The Chronicle Wednesday, May 20, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

For the first time in almost nine years that he left office as President of the Republic of Ghana, Former President Rawlings was at the Osu Castle last Friday to meet the incumbent President John Evans Atta Mills to brief him on his recent trip to South Africa.
The meeting was said to have been held in a friendly atmosphere where the two exchanged pleasantries. Mr. Rawlings, who led a government delegation to the inauguration of South Africa’s new President, Jacob Zuma is reported to have told President Mills that South Africa was looking forward to forging mutual and beneficial relations with Ghana in the areas of commerce, technology transfer, investment, tourism and agriculture among others.
A statement signed and issued by the President’s Spokesperson, Mahama Ayariga said the ex-President had very good impressions about Zuma’s commitment to work with Ghana.
On his part, President Mills was said to have thanked Mr. Rawlings for having accepted to represent Ghana at the inauguration and assured him that there would be follow up measure to take advantage of the opportunities available for mutually beneficial relations between the two countries.
Rawlings led a delegation that included his wife, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings and astute businessman and renowned soccer administrator, Herbert Mensah, to South Africa.
They were there to officially represent President Mills at the inauguration ceremony of Jacob Zuma , which took place in Pretoria.
Meanwhile, Mr. Rawlings left Accra for the United Kingdom on Saturday night.
He is there on the invitation of the Oxford Research Network on Governance in Africa (ORENGA) and the University of Oxford, to give a lecture under the theme “Democracy and Security in Africa”.
President Rawlings, who was accompanied by his wife, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings will be addressing students and academics at the Faculty of Law auditorium of the University of Oxford. Other activities lined up for the former President include an informal interaction with students and a dinner in his honour.
ORENGA is a research network that co-ordinates and facilitates research on the politics and modern history of government in Africa. It serves a vital need at the University of Oxford by bringing together scholars from several departments and faculties who work in different disciplines on common sets of issues.
Members of the network supervise research students and contribute to teaching undergraduate and graduate degree programmes in African Studies.

New IGP`s challenge to officers, men

Get on, or be booted out

… Stresses on need for `Service with Integrity`

Posted: The Chronicle Wednesday, May 20, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

In his quest to restore what he admits to be the dented image of the Service, the new Inspector General Police (IGP), Paul Tawiah Quaye, has sent a word of advice to the officers and men of the Ghana Police Service (GPS), to live up to expectations.
According to him, any individual or group of persons in the service who act contrary to expectations would be made to face the full consequences of his or her actions and inaction, since the Police Service was no more going to compromise on its integrity.
He made these comments at his maiden address at the Police Headquarters in Accra, to outline his vision and objectives to the media.
Mr. Quaye therefore asked his officers and men to ensure a high degree of discipline and accountability within the service, indicating his commitment and preparedness to enforce, what he described as a rigorous equitable discipline in his administration.
“Officers and men, who for whatever reasons may run crisscross to the ethics of the police profession, will be dealt with drastically, without favour,” he emphasised.
He further advised the officers and men of the service, to operate within the parameters of democratic principles of policing, devoid of acts which tend to undermine the tenets which govern the protection of the fundamental human rights and freedoms of the citizenry, as enshrined in Chapter 5 of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.
That notwithstanding, the IGP was optimistic the officers and men of the Ghana Police Service would abide by the rules and regulations governing the profession, in order not to fall prey to the law.
The police administration has also set specific goals and targets for all police stations, districts, units, divisions, and regions, against which performance would be measured periodically. Consequently, the aggregate of results will be analysed in the context of the overall national objectives of the country.
This way, the IGP believes, “negative variances reflecting non-performance or under-performance can be immediately identified, evaluated and rectified,” with the main control mechanism being the effective monitoring of performance at all levels.
Mr. Quaye envisions seeing a world-class police service that uses best professional practices and strategies to combat crime, including apprehension and prosecution of criminals in Ghana, with the belief that this would enhance the peace and security of the various communities in the country.
Based on this vision, the Inspector General of Police says it is his principal objective to implement systematically, short to medium term strategic national policing plans, aimed at significantly improving the maintenance of law and order, and the protection of life and property. In order to achieve this objective, the police administration has resolved to embark on a programme of undertaking a major internal re-structuring and capacity-building in the service, with a review to effectively and efficiently utilising the limited human and logistic resources of the service.
It has also expressed willingness to develop a professionally competent workforce, through what they call systematic core and related training and development, to establish a high delivery.
In this light, the IGP said there would be regular in-service training programmes for the officers and men of the service, with a view of sharpening their professional skills and keeping them abreast with contemporary developments in policing, with particular focus on the Ghanaian society.
Emphasis in these courses are expected to be put on integrity, discipline, leadership and management skills, fairness in dealing with the public, and the retention of staff in core operational roles.

The Oxford Lecture

JJ EXPLODES IN LONDON

…Accuses Kufuor’s gov’t of profligate spending

Posted:The Chronicle Wednesday, May 20, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

It has virtually become impossible for former President Rawlings to mount any political platform without launching vitriolic attacks on his political opponents, especially members of the erstwhile New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, led by former President John Agyekum Kufuor. When he recently got the opportunity to address a forum at the prestigious Oxford University in the United Kingdom, Mr. Rawlings accused the Kufuor administration of abusing the country’s scanty resources.
In his opinion, “never before in our country’s history has there been such blatant dissipation of national resources” as witnessed under President Kufuor and his NPP regime. He accused the NPP of having left a huge debt to the tune of GH¢ 47 billion on the government and people of Ghana, when the country’s “combined debt from Independence was GH¢ 44 billion”, the former President said.
To him, the irony of the situation was that “there is absolutely no significant infrastructural development to show for it!”. Mr. Rawlings was speaking on the issue of ‘Security and Democracy in Africa’.
Mr. Rawlings at his recent address at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi, also did not spare the immediate past government when he was reported to have said “contrary to the assertion that their (NPP) tradition was truly democratic, the NPP government was an excellent example of an undemocratic regime”. To buttress his point, Mr. Rawlings stressed that under the NPP regime “once you belonged to the party you did no wrong. Every effort was made to obliterate the P/NDC legacy and the institutions of government were so politicized that even when they took decisions against government officials, such decisions were disregarded with impunity.”
Rawlings told his Oxford audience that Ghana under NPP sunk into a democracy of nepotism, non-accountability, power to the rich and a complete disregard for the feelings of the electorate. He believed that these and other reasons led to the NPP losing power in the 2008 general elections.
He described as very dangerous the allegations of abuse of the structures of the Security Services, the hounding and persecution of some security personnel, refusal to follow laid down promotion procedures and a complete politicisation of the military under the erstwhile administration.
“The NPP could not co-exist with Institutions which had integrity. The Security Services were not spared and the Judiciary also took a serious beating as well”, he stressed.
According to the ex-President, some of his colleagues were also aware of the deepening crises in the barracks. Mr Rawlings recounted that a ban was placed on respectable and senior security officers from visiting security and military installations.
Mr. Rawlings said despite all these efforts to muffle people’s rights, Ghanaians did not hesitate to vote out the ruling party when it mattered most, despite the clear doctoring of figures that took place in a desperate bid to cling on to power.
“The NPP took us to the abyss as far as democracy was concerned, and such methods do not entrench our democracy. It allows for chaos, lack of confidence in the electoral process and political apathy”, he emphasized.
In spite of this, the former President said Ghana has managed to be stable because of the culture of tolerance that had been created between 1981 and 2000. According to him, these achievements have not come as a matter of the pressures imposed by the West, but “a desire by the people to prove that peoples’ power is most sacrosanct.”
For this reason, he noted that “democracy is democracy so long as it is propped up by freedom and justice, probity and accountability”, stressing that “our problem is how to deal with the Western double standards,” he stated.