Mahama in tears over media reports

President John Dramani Mahama has taken a swipe at journalists that have been concocting stories about politicians, including himself, cautioning them to refrain from the habit to help sustain Ghana’s peace and protect the hard won reputation of the media.

He said he recently became a victim of false publication when a section of the media came out with a story that his convoy had hit a pregnant woman, stressing that the information was wrong so the public should treat it with contempt.

The NDC leader also stated that he had now developed a thick skin “which is getting close to that of a crocodile”, therefore he now treated false reports about him in the media as an occupational hazard.

The president said the emergence of social media networks like facebook and twitter where control is almost impossible, had given people the freedom to peddle falsehood about innocent people, without any concrete evidence.

Addressing a hugely attended press conference in Kumasi yesterday, the NDC flagbearer observed that several media houses had been coming out with inaccurate stories, a development which he said was a threat to the country’s democratic dispensation.

President Mahama described the media as very powerful so he entreated practitioners to be very circumspect when coming out with stories, especially as the general elections drew near, to help maintain peace and stability.

He entreated journalists to verify their reports before publishing it to avoid coming out with false stories which could inflame passions and create uneasiness in the country.

The NDC flagbearer expressed concern over the seeming polarization among the citizenry on political party lines, charging Ghanaians not to allow their political affiliation to divide them, as they were one people with a common destiny.

President Mahama said when elected as president in 2013, he would be the president of the entire country, stressing that he would not discriminate against NPP businessmen “but I will rather help them to develop their businesses and help solve unemployment problem”.

Strangely, the NDC administration he heads has been at the fore front of dividing the country, with job openings being filled with NDC footsoldiers.

Mr Mahama observed that Ghana had made giant strides in terms of development since1985 to now, insisting that even the opposition parties were aware that things were well with the country but they were intentionally sending wrong signals that things were bad to win votes.

Touching on present national issues, the president said he was aware of the devastating effects of galamsey activities on the environment so the NDC administration had tailored an effective programme to address the pressing national issue soon.

He noted that as part of the plan, every mining district in the country would have a district mining officer who would seek to ensure that small scale miners conduct their mining business with care so as not to destroy river bodies and farmlands.

President Mahama announced that about 100 foreigners were arrested recently for engaging in illegal mining and most of these people had been deported to their countries, with others having their issue addressed.