The Ministry of Information has condemned the assault of Citi TV/Citi FM journalist, Ms Akosua Otchere during the vetting of the upcoming Odododiodio parliamentary primaries of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Friday.
The Ministry in a statement signed by the Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah noted that "Journalism is not a crime" therefore journalists should not suffer "any form of harassment, intimidation, or attack simply for doing their work."
"The Ministry of Information has noted with concern a report of an assault of a Citi FM reporter, Ms Akosua Otchere, while covering an event on Friday, 13th October 2023.
"The Ministry condemns in no uncertain terms the subjecting of journalists or media houses to any form of harassment, intimidation, or attack simply for doing their work. Journalism is not a crime," portions of the statement note.
The Ministry also urged Citi TV/Citi FM to formally report the incident to both the Ghana Police Service and the National Media Commission (NMC) for appropriate action to be taken against the perpetrators.
Akosua Otchere, was on Friday, October 13, 2023, attacked while covering the vetting of the parliamentary aspirants of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Odododiodio constituency in Accra.
Ms. Otchere was attacked by some NDC thugs, who twisted her hand and snatched her phone.
This happened when members of one of the aspirant's camps destroyed party property, including chairs and an air-conditioner, and pelted the vetting committee members with stones, citing unfairness on their part.
The Odododiodio constituency is a notorious hot spot for acts of vandalism and political violence having recorded several incidents over the years.
This incident comes barely few weeks after public outrage over an attempted assault at United Television where some NPP thugs stormed a live TV show to express their displeasure about the content of the show.
In that incident, although the Ministry of Information issued a similar statement in condemning the act, the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) and some members of the public were not enthused about portions of the statement.
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