National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, has charged journalists in the Bono Region to keep detailed records of public investments and hold the government accountable.
He said Government officials should expect scrutiny by journalists.
Addressing the 4th Bono Regional GJA Awards in Sunyani under the theme “Ethics, Integrity and Impactful Journalism,” Mr Asiedu Nketiah said professional journalism has become even more important in an era of social media, political propaganda and AI-generated fake content.
“Somebody still has to establish what actually happened, and that responsibility makes professional journalism more important,” he told the gathering of journalists, traditional leaders and award winners on September 19.
He urged Bono journalists to track the billions of cedis in road and infrastructure projects underway in the region.
“Know what has been awarded, know who is doing the work, know what the contract says and know when the project is supposed to be completed. When the date arrives, go back,” he said.
“Five years from now, it should be possible for somebody to go into the archives of the media in Bono and reconstruct what happened to the major development commitments being made today.”
In a direct message to his own party in power, the NDC Chairman said: “I say this as National Chairman of the governing National Democratic Congress: this government should expect scrutiny. Ministers should answer legitimate questions. Public expenditure should be examined.”
He advised politicians to stop treating difficult questions from journalists as hostility. “Sometimes the person asking the uncomfortable question is telling you something that the people around you are no longer willing to say.”
Mr Asiedu Nketiah also raised concerns about media sustainability, saying journalists must be able to build respectable careers without becoming financially dependent on the politicians and institutions they cover.
He congratulated award winners, noting that while awards help careers, reputation built on accuracy and integrity matters longer.
