Some Section Of The Media Poised To See Npp Loose 2024 Elections- Npp Former Regional Communication Director

The Former Bono East NPP Regional Regional Communication Director, Benjamin Amoako Frimpong(POPA) has said the media as we were made to understand as the 4th Estate of the Realm with the mandate of being independent, supposed to inform, educate and entertain,one could clearly see that this responsibility of the media can be said to have been thrown into the dustbin for propaganda to triumph.

One could clearly see from the forgoing that some sections of the media see themselves as thin gods who call the shots and can determine what the people must hear and what not to hear. They determine which party leaves government and which party rules in every 8 years according to them.

It’s quiet clear that some have deliberately made an agenda to get the ruling NPP go into opposition so as to get what they deserve which to them this government isn’t offering them.We are very much aware of how mansions and cars were distributed to top journalists in this country under the tenure of the erstwhile Mahama government and hence the clamour to see him back to power to continue on that spending spree.

The current government came into power with certain programmes outlined in their 2016 and 2020 manifesto, and instead of them holding this government accountable to its policies as to whether they have been able to achieve a percentage of these promises or not, will rather want to stick to the few negativity so perceived by them, leaving the people to their faith as to whether those promises made are been fulfilled or otherwise.

The NPP government campaigned on One District One Factory( 1D1F) and so one would have thought that 6 years down the lane,these media would have informed Ghanaians whether the promise has been fulfilled or not and where if they have been fulfilled at all their locations and the number of people who are gainfully employed under the initiative.
All we see is that the opposition says these factories in reality do not exist. One expects the independent media to hold government to this promise and show to all Ghanaians whether in real sense these things do exist.

I remember some years ago,one of the prominent media houses in Ghana Peacefm with their morning show host Kwame Sefa Kayi sent their reporters on the ground to check the true existence of the much talked about 200 Senior Day Secondary Schools promised by the Mahama government and to let Ghanaians know whether in reality those schools really existed on grounds. All became aware of the true existence or otherwise of these Day schools as it ended up showing that truly these 200 schools promised could never have been completed in 4 years.

Today the Akuffo Addo government has promised Ghanaians of building about 111 hospitals which has been touted as Agenda 111 and one would have thought that almost a year down the lane,these fourth estate of the realm would have given Ghanaians the true existence of these hospital on the ground at the various districts that do not have these hospital.

A recent trip by the President of the Republic Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo across the Regions up North and recently his trip to the Volta region saw him inspect ongoing works on Agenda 111 hospitals and what is so worrying is that the media seem silent on some of these hospitals under construction. Just yesterday the Vice President of the Republic was in the Northern and Savanah Regions inspecting some of these projects under construction.

Currently this government is constructing 10 STEM Schools across the country but little is been heard from those supposed to educate and inform us. As we speak the various TVET centres been constructed with the yet to be distributed Buses to be handed to all these TVET schools and Pick-ups for Regional TVET Directors.I wouldn’t want to talk about the over 6 interchanges currently ongoing in the nation’s capital and the yet to be started and much awaited Suame interchange.

If there is any government that has spent monies on our railways under the 4th Republic then that can never be any government than the Akuffo Addo government but as usual the opposition will say the government has borrowed with nothing to show on this media platforms and such comments will be allowed to pass by without a word from this agenda setters.

As we speak today there are about 10 different 5000 mini capacity stadiums across the former 10 regions of Ghana and instead of our media informing us of the true existence or otherwise of these stadium,little is being said about it.All they will tell you is that the ruling government party communicators must communicate these projects. About 1500 brand new motorbikes were distributed to the Ghana Police Service to improve on police visibility in the national capital and across the country but the the media as usual saw nothing good in that gesture by government.

The opposition NDC says this government has borrowed more with nothing to show and so one expects that this supposed independent media will let Ghanaians see whether indeed it is true that the borrowings of this government has nothing to show.Recently during a conversation with a colleague of mine I asked her if she knew the government is constructing 10 ,5000 mini capacity stadium in the former 10 Regions and she said oh no,she’s not heard or seen anything like that. Such a person if you tell her Akuffo Addo has borrowed more with nothing to show for it,why won’t she believe it.

Government last year through the President His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo made it known to all Ghanaians that it had constructed over 10,000 kilometres of roads from 2017 to date and so as to whether that is true or not can be verified by the 4th Estate of the Realm and that is not what we see them doing.

There is no denying the fact that bad news sells but it behoves on the media for once to let Ghanaians know what the positives too are. You could see deliberately that some TV stations in Ghana each day have the penchant to show us only the dilapidated schools in the hinterlands and bad roads, but will not take the same delight to show the over 50 Warehouses built by this government,the over 1000 infrastructures built across the various secondary schools in Ghana, the over 127 factories completed and in use now. No one says the media must be singing the praises of this government but it gets so worrying at times to see some sections of the media failing in this responsibility of informing the citizens what our monies are been used for.

Recently if you follow the media landscape you could see that some media houses have made it a point to do whatever is within their means to make government look unpopular even in the face of the recent global crisis with the recent Covid-19 and now the Russia Ukraine war where the IMF and the World Bank have said these 2 situations have hugely impacted negatively on World economies with the recent rise in inflation the world over and the huge rising cost of living.

The recent announcement by the Akuffo government to go to the IMF for support has been seen by some sections of the media that oh you said the NDC was incompetent and so they went to IMF and so if today you also turn to go to IMF then it means that you are also incompetent leaving behind the realities that resulted into these 2 governments going to the IMF for support.

Finally let the media hold the government accountable to for all the policies and programmes it campaigned on and to inform Ghanaians whether in reality they have served well and deserve to be retained or booted out of power.

Compiled by
Kwabena Amoako Frimpong ( POPA)

Former Bono East Regional Communication Director- NPP.
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