Jake Obetsebi Lamptey – NPP and Dr Kwabena Adjei – NDC
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) said it observed with shock and concern the absolute impunity with which the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration continued to campaign on the nation’s public broadcaster GTV.
The main opposition party slammed the ruling NDC for flouting the National Media Commission (NMC) guidelines on political advertising, which clearly stated that all political advertising of any kind should cease 24 hours before the polls open.
In a statement, the NPP lamented that GTV, the national broadcaster with a duty to set examples of high ethics and avoid discrimination among parties, had been playing footage of President John Dramani Mahama visiting constituencies and campaigning.
“Whilst the president’s party, the NDC, ought to have known better, GTV to a large extent has been less than fair to other political parties,” the NPP pointed out.
The NPP said despite GTV’s constitutional duty and judicial pronouncements to be fair to all competing political parties, it had consistently over projected the governing party in all of its coverage.
“As a publicly funded institution, the NPP is very disappointed at GTV’s attitude. The NPP, by this release, is formally drawing the attention of the NMC to the blatant breach of its guidelines and requests that the appropriate action is taken.
“We are also calling on the NDC to restrain its members, especially Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, a cabinet Minister who is campaigning in Tema West Constituency and Mrs. Cecilia Johnson, a member of the Council of State who is travelling in Brong Ahafo Region campaigning with a vote buying approach”.
NPP Writes To GBC
The NPP, in a follow-up to the concern, wrote to the Director General of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) complaining about the violation.
“It has come to our attention that the President has planned to address the nation this evening, December 6, 2012, on live television. Purportedly, his remarks will be confined to the subject of peaceful elections, but we have no assurances that will be the case and no opportunity for sanction if they are not.
“Thus, the New Patriotic wishes to announce its explicit and forceful objection to this contravention of law and flouting of the media blackout to which all campaigns agreed. The President’s plan is nothing more than a blatant attempt to distort public perception on the very eve of the election. We cite as an example, the fact that former President John Agyekum Kufuor, when seeking re-election as an incumbent in 2004, did not address the nation on the eve of the election, knowing too well that such action would have amounted to a blatant abuse of incumbency.
“The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and the National Media Commission must take an all-or-nothing approach: either the candidates appear jointly to pledge peace and read a brief statement together, or none of them appear at all.
“To allow one candidate an unfair advantage to promote himself when allegiance to a media blackout is the legal and accepted course of action, would be a dereliction of duty on the part of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and the National Media Commission,” Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, NPP Chairman said.
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