A former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, has condemned the attack by thugs of the New Patriotic Party at the studios of UTV, a member of the Despite Media Group over the weekend.
He says the act which has been equally condemned by the NPP and the Ministry of Information, defies the very principle upon which the party’s first president, John Agyekum Kufuor, campaigned to win power for them in the year 2000.
In a statement issued by the cardio surgeon Sunday, October 8, 2023, he said perpetrators of the deed might have been influenced by how the NPP have licensed impunity to gain roots in the party.
“Perhaps, these thugs have taken cue from how the government and the party have allowed impunity to fester and grow in the NPP,” he indicated.
Pondering over the development and visualizing what ensued at the studios of UTV, the founder of the Korle-Bu Cardiothoracic Centre said he could not fathom the scenario but to ask himself how issues got to that point.
“After watching various footages of the events, and reading the responses from the Ministry of Information and the party, there is only one question that has been lingering my mind; NPP, How Did We Get Here?” he asked in portions of his statement.
He explained further that, the message which President Kufuor preached to Ghanaians upon which the NPP is known for, “was anchored on the ideology of the party which resonated with people like me to continue to be part of the party. President Kufuor took various steps to ensure the media was given the safest environment to operate and thrive.”
Professor Frimpong-Boateng says he has been baffled that a party which believes in the expression of divergent views could attack a media house without recourse to the rule of law.
“I am puzzled that, a tradition that has long been associated with believing in exchange of ideas, respect for rule of law will have its members attack a media house,” he added.
Citing previous incidents of vandalism unleashed by party thugs on state officials, the Chairman of the dissolved Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM) said the attitude of the NPP leadership towards such acts suggests they sanction such deeds which in the end inure to their benefit.
“If I recall, no one was allowed to be punished when similar groups went to the seat of government in Ashanti region to attack the then national security coordinator. Again, no one was made to face the law, when these brutes attacked a court in Kumasi making the lady judge who was sitting on that case run for her live in the full glare of the public.
These events have led many to believe, leaders have lost the moral control of the party or they benefit from these barbaric acts. So, I ask, NPP, How Did We Get Here?
I am equally amazed about how some members of the NPP are going about their daily routine as if they do not know the mood of majority of Ghanaians and the potential danger awaiting the party in the near future” the former flag bearer aspirant of the NPP stated.
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Some individuals believed to be members of the New Patriotic Party invaded the studios of UTV during a live telecast of their United Showbiz, a weekend entertainment programme and threatened the host and guests saying the composition of the panel and other acts that were exhibited on the show was an indictment on the NPP and the ruling government.
Sixteen (16) persons were subsequently arrested by the police after a report by the Ministry of Information and management of the station. The NPP, NDC and other stakeholders including the Ghana Journalists Association have all condemned the act.
