The Human Rights Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Gifty Adjei Addo has fixed May 26 to hear the case in which Media Foundation for West Africa, MFWA has sued the National Communications Authority, NCA over the closure of some radio stations.
The parties were on March 31 ordered to file their written submissions of which they have complied. The parties met the Judge in her chambers for further direction before the date for hearing was fixed.
MFWA on November 27, last year filed a suit against Ghana’s media frequency regulator, NCA over the closure of some radio stations. On July 22, last year the MFWA, through its Executive Director, Sulemana Braimah, submitted an access to information request to the NCA, in exercise of rights guaranteed under Article 21(1)(f) of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution and under Ghana’s Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989).
The MFWA had requested from the NCA the full list of all FM radio stations, indicating name of Company, name of radio station, location, and frequency number, that it had shut down following the Authority’s 2017 FM spectrum audit which, according to the NCA was in line with the 2018 decision of the Electronic Communications Tribunal.
The applicant is seeking among other things a declaration that the decision and demand by Respondent contained in its letters dated 29th July and August 20, are unlawful, unreasonable, unfair, and in violation of Applicant’s constitutional and fundamental rights to access information.
