The Leadership of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), led by Mr Fiifi Kwetey has called on the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) to encourage the media to ensure Institutions play their roles as expected.
On Wednesday, August 30, 2023, the leadership of the National Democratic Congress called on the GJA for a collaboration between the two towards national development.
The call was to familiarise themselves, discuss their vision, plans and readiness to collaborate with the media in championing national interest and also to contribute to national development.
Speaking at the meeting, the General Secretary of the NDC, Mr Fiifi Fiavi Kwetey observed that there seems to be a desire to return to a culture where institutions almost become something like appendages of a political or mostly a ruling party.
He therefore called on the GJA and the Media to ensure that is stopped.
“As a political party, we want to say that when institutions are strong, the country gets stronger and it is the truth that parties often want institutions to be under their thumbs for their own purposes but we must resist that edge,” he said.
Fiifi Kwetey said Ghana should not be experiencing the economic hardships it is having today if institutions work well and independently, pointing the Central Bank and the Electoral Commission as such institutions that are supposed to play independent roles but behave as appendages of a political party.
He believed the media can take these up to ensure that institutions work, call duty bearers to account, and ensure that the right thing is done.
He said the same way the NDC expects the media to assert its independence in doing its job, it expects all institutions including the Central Banks, Police, the Legislature, EC, and other stakeholders to do the same.
Fiifi Kwetey also expressed worry that people turn to corrupt institutions when they win power.
He said the NDC was conscious of the need to protect Ghana’s democracy therefore the call for the survival of Ghana’s democracy and the strengthening of institutions in the country.
He made it known that the DNC was shaping its policy, adding that it intends to incorporate issues that will benefit the media in the policy, all geared towards national development and the promotion of democracy in the country.