Regional News of Tuesday, 16 December 2003

Source: GNA

GBC official speaks on broadcasting

Wa, Dec. 16, GNA - Mr Christ Alalbilla, Upper West Regional Head of Programmes of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) has stated that good broadcasting has no room for imagination and half truths.

"You are supposed to be informing educating and entertaining your audience and so if you move from these cardinal points to give issues that are not factual, then you are misinforming your audience". Mr Alalbilla stated this at Wa, during the Regional celebration of women in broadcasting week at Wa.

The programme, which was mainly focused on children drew participating children from various schools in the Wa municipality to acquaint them with the basis of broadcasting and programming. He called on producers of radio programmes to take pains to research deep into programmes before going ahead to broadcast them as a rush could result in so many mistakes.

Mr. Alalbilla said programmes should also be interesting and appealing to attract listeners, who could easily move away from stations, if programmes are boring.

Mr. Godfrey Bayong Tangu, Wa Municipal Chief Executive called on radio stations to continuously educate the youth on drug-abuse, teenage pregnancy and HIV/AIDS, as they were the main challenges against the development of the youth.

He also appealed to parents to accord their children the necessary support to enable them to grow up to be useful citizens. Mrs. Clare Der, Regional Co-ordinator of Ghana National Commission on Children (GNCC) stated that parents had the primary responsibility of moulding children into important personalities in future since they spend so much time with them than teachers.

She said the government was working round the clock to discourage the use of children during conflicts, ethnic wars and demonstrations.

"We shall, in that stead form civic clubs at schools against child violence and the watching or war and pornographic films," she concluded.