Nana Yaa Jantuah, the General Secretary of the Convention People’s Party has said the “the National Media Commission is now a National Security” following their reaction towards some pronouncements made by broadcaster, Blessed Godsbrain Smart, host of Onua TV/FM’s morning show.
Madam Jantuah says the position of the Commission on the matter is a double standard one considering their own admission of not being responsible for checking media content some years ago.
On TV3’s NewDay Thursday, November 30, 2023, Nana Jantuah indicated that the National Media Commission had once abstained from engaging in matters of content when the activities of Nana Agradaa became an issue of concern in the country.
For her, she doesn’t understand why same content provided by Captain Smart has now become an issue of concern to them.
“They (NMC) don’t just get up and do things. When Agradaa was doing all manner of things on TV, we complained and they said they are not in charge of content and this is content. I’m a trained journalist. So, if you’re not in charge of content, why then do you decide to close down a radio and TV station? Because whatever they are talking about is content,” she indicated.
She alleged that the tangent of the development makes it a personal attack and interspersed with political connotations.
“And now they used the word journalist’s so it means they are now referring to one person and it’s become personalized. Captain Smart, so then it goes beyond doing their regulatory work. It is about one person. They’ve actually mentioned his name. So, this one is an attack on a personality and it looks very political,” he indicated.
Her comments come on the back a threat by the National Media Commission to have the frequency authorisations of Onua TV/FM suspended based on certain pronouncements made by the morning show host on the two platforms.
Despite Article 167 of the 1992 Constitution prescribing the Commission’s functions to include; “to promote and ensure the freedom and independence of the media for mass communication or information and to insulate the state-owned media from governmental control,” the NMC has initiated moves to get the licenses of the two stations suspended.
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