GIBA demands the audio recording of Captain Smart that warranted his arrest
Issues regarding the arrest and subsequent release of Media General’s Captain Smart has caught the attention of the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association(GIBA) and the entity has called on Management of Onua FM to furnish the association with the recordings that are deemed to threaten Ghana’s peace and warrants Captain Smart’s arrest.
“We have asked to receive copies of sound bites of the exact thing that was said. But it is unfortunate because this is not the direction the industry and our members are to go,” said GIBA President, Cecil Sunkwa-Mills.
GIBA, he said, would work with stakeholders to ensure that, “we do not push the boundary of the freedom of the press. And so, we should be responsible with the microphone when we speak to thousands of people”.
He revealed that the request was made during a meeting between the Association and the subsidiary of Media General Ghana limited after the National Media Commission (NMC) sent a letter of caution to Accra-based Media House.
According to the association, the audio would help the association have more details to make them ascertain and take a position on the matter based on its ethics, legal and regulatory framework if even the broadcaster in question is not available.
The NMC sent a letter warning management of Onua FM, urging it to guard against content that undermines the security and peace of the nation.
In the letter signed by the Executive Secretary, George Sarpong, the NMC condemned a recent broadcast by Captain Smart, saying he called for an insurrection against the state of Ghana and its institutions.
“We are particularly concerned about a recent broadcast in which ‘Captain Smart’ calls for insurrection against the state of Ghana and its institutions,” it said.
“This, by all standards, crosses the line of robust and critical broadcasting and transforms your radio station into a megaphone of war”.
The Commission said it pardoned the radio station because much of its content was within the professional standard practice and it could therefore regulate itself.
“While that particular broadcast, without more, constitutes adequate grounds for regulatory action, we still retain the belief that given the chance, management could take steps to bring your content unto a level of professional acceptability.
“We are fortified in this belief by the fact that considerable parts of your other broadcast, including the news, offer that hope,” the NMC said.
It advised the station to continually exercise the required professional caution in their interest.
By: Stella Annan | myactiveonline.com Twitter @activetvgh
