By Edzorna Francis Mensah
The Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin says persons who have issues with the conduct of Media Practitioners should lodge complaints with the National Media Commission for redress.
He said, “the increasing tendency on the part of the Police to arrest journalists for what they describe as mistakes is old school, anachronistic and is sending this country back into the dark ages of media persecution”.
According to him, the Police cannot assume responsibility for responsible media practice in Ghana by scanning newspapers and news portals and arresting journalists for errors and misrepresentations.
Speaker Bagbin was speaking at the launch of the Parliamentary Press Centre in Parliament.
”I am not for a moment holding a brief for irresponsible and unprofessional conduct of journalists. I am simply saying that there is a cure for that in our current legal regime”.
On the issue of improving reportage on Parliament, the Speaker said, the executives of the Parliamentary Press Corps, working with the Public Affairs Department, “have a way of admitting journalists assigned to Parliament. I urge the executives to continue to ensure that as much as possible, very qualified and professional journalists with good experience are available to report on proceedings of the House”.
He also urged the Editors and News Chiefs in the various media houses to assign very experienced reporters to Parliament and make a conscious effort to keep them there for a considerable amount of time to enable them to learn the intricacies, so as to produce excellent reports.
In his remarks, the Vice Dean of the Parliamentary Press Corps, Stephen Odoi-Larbi on behalf the Dean said, Journalists reporting form the House will continue to exercise decorum and maximum circumspection in order “to help build a good image for Parliament but we also need the Leadership of Parliament to help improve our working environment”.
Read More: Speaker of Parliament Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin
