Media not government PR wing – Lecturer

The media in Ghana would need to interrogate the achievements touted by government within its first 100 days, communications expert Dr Etse Sikanku has said.

“The media are not stenographers and not the public relations wing of the Presidency or politicians… The first stage of reporting is to transmit the information of an event that has happened, but beyond that we should get into hardcore investigative journalism,” Dr Sikanku said.

Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has said that the first 100 days of the Nana Akufo-Addo-led government has seen remarkable success, saying the period registered "one day, one achievement".

According to Dr Bawumia, government has recorded at least 103 achievements within its first 100 days in office.

He revealed this during a presentation at a town hall meeting to mark the 100 days of Mr Akufo-Addo’s government on Monday, April 17.

Among the achievements, Dr Bawumia emphasised that through prudent economic management, the Ghanaian cedi had been stabilised with appreciable strength gain in the past weeks in relation to the US dollar and other international currencies.

However, the communication lecturer at the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) wants the media to go further with “hardcore interpretative reporting to see what the effects of these policies have been on the ordinary people”.

He made these known when he appeared as a guest on Class FM’s Executive Breakfast Show on Tuesday, April 18.

He explained to host Moro Awudu: “As media people, what we need to do is to [verify] on a very practical level if these things are really happening.”

For him, the policies must be investigated thoroughly and government held accountable on their promises and what have been achieved within the period.

In addition, he wants the media to “give voice to the people, we need to go down there and find out from people what they think about the government and the effects of the policies in their lives”.

He emphasised that a platform to take in multiple views from the public was necessary and would an opportunity beyond one that allows for politicians to argue among themselves and retort against each other.