Parliament calls for film censorship

Parliament on Thursday called on the Film Censorship Board to wake up to the realities of the times and pre-screen and censor films that adversely affected the nation's socio-cultural sensibilities.

About 12 legislators, who associated themselves with a maiden statement, Mr Dominic Nitiwul, who became an MP for Bimbilla in a recent bye-election made in Parliament, deplored the proliferation of "unwholesome" films in the country and called for pragmatic approach of parents, teachers, churches and mosques to curb the menace.

The MPs asked for sufficient funding or the establishment of an endowment fund to enable the censorship board, which is under the Ministry of Information and Presidential Affairs and is financially starved to function effectively.

Mr Nitiwul, who based his statement on the dangers of negative films, said; "we have a duty to protect our extremely vulnerable sons and daughters in their formative years from becoming prey to the onslaught of violent and negative films. "The objective of true entertainment down the ages has always been to inform, to educate and relax the mind with comic relief".

Mr Nitiwul said it was wrong to say that it did not matter when negative stories about an armed robber acquiring riches were screened because that would influence the behaviour of the youth. He said the best interest of the nation would not be served if people pretended that it did not matter because it was just films being screened for entertainment.

The negative effect of screening such films had led to the embarrassing situation of Ghanaian girls shamelessly advertising themselves on the Internet. Tracing the development of music, dancing and culture of Ghanaians, Mr Nitiwul noted that with the advent of video culture, "all these junk appeared, cheaply produced in thousands and available at affordable prices worldwide.

"In the name of liberation and freedom and giving expression to wild thought in creativity, often bordering on lunatic fringes, strange impossibilities were presented as rational stories, challenging man's very perception of reality."

Mr Nitiwul said; "in our sub-region, taboos and strange unbelievable and unthinkable dreams are brought to life; spousal murder, rape, pregnant virgins, ghosts running wild, snakes in homes, unchecked defilement, highway robbery, murder - we see them daily on our screens".