Ace investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas has sounded a caution to politicians across the divide particularly in Ghana where attacks on pressmen have begun to surge.
Citing the killing of a member of the Tiger Eyer P.I Ahmed Hussein Suale early this year, the globally acclaimed media icon benchmarked for his daring exposés on corrupt institutions, chided politicians in the country for taking a nonchalant approach to the numerous threats on journalists.
Ahmed Hussein Suale was attacked and killed by unknown gunmen in Accra shortly after the public viewing of one of Tiger Eye P. I’s investigative pieces.
Following the public airing of his work, Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyepong, vehemently criticized Anas’ methods in a series of programmes he publicized on his TV station, Net 2 TV dubbed: “who watches the watchman?”
Mr Agyapong exposed the long-hidden identity of Ahmed Suale on television, charging his employees to ‘discipline’ him if he was seen around. Prior to his action, many Ghanaians did not know the face of the Tiger Eye P.I’s member.
“When the politicians mounted the stage and said that they would hang journalists, and said that they would beat journalists if government had spoken and had been firm about it, Ahmed Suale would not have died,” Anas intimated.
Anas who was speaking at the Media Freedom Conference in London jointly organized by the governments of UK and Canada, with UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, an aspirant of the Prime Minister position, the Canadian Foreign Minister, Chrystia Freeland and renowned Human Rights lawyer, Amal Clooney all in attendance cautioned that if leaders did not do better to protect journalists facing threats from governments in their work, no one would be safe.
“…When it comes to media responsibility, it’s for all of us to stand up, say it as it is. Because truth is that, the gun or the torture that was meted out to Ahmed Karshoggi, the gun that was used to shoot Ahmed Suale still lives and that same gun will be used against the politician if we don’t stand up and fight for media freedom”
