The Chairman of the National Media Commission (NMC), Mr. Kwesi Gyan Apenteng, has urged political party activists to refrain from the use of offensive words against their opponents, during debates and electioneering.
He expressed concern that the use of offensive languages by some politicians had become the order of the day in Ghanaian politics, especially as the country prepared for the December7 elections.
“We are aware of how, elsewhere, especially in Africa, political communication led to troubles, including violence in Rwanda, Kenya and Ivory Coast.”
Mr. Apenteng, who made the call at a forum organised for political party communicators in the Ashanti Region by the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), in Kumasi, asked political parties and their activists to be alive to their responsibility as key partners in national development.
The forum, which was on the theme: “Issues Not Insults,” was adopted by the MFWA to propagate the message of peace to political parties and their activists, to help purge the use of offensive languages in Ghanaian politics ahead of Election 2016?.
He noted that the media had been the target of people advocating peace, but said it was time to also caution political parties about inflammatory statements.
Mr. Apenteng said a lot of programmes had been initiated to help the media carry out its duties responsibly adding “we do not allow the media to be used or abused and now the attention is on the political parties”.
He, however, said disagreements could come during electioneering campaigns, but that should not lead to insults.
The Executive Director of MFWA, Sulemana Braimah, said “it is the desire of the foundation to keep sanity in the media airwaves hence the language monitoring instrument, which monitors 60 radio stations across the country”.
He said the move that intended to name and shame those who use offensive words on radio had helped in monitoring offenders.
