The Ghana Journalists Association has referred a case of extortion and blackmail by a Journalist to the Police CID for further investigations.

The Journalist of Accra FM, Nana Okyere Gyampa, is reported to have persistently demanded five million cedis from the Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) as a condition for dropping a “negative story” against the company.

A statement by the GJA President, Affail Monney, stated that the Journalist during an interrogation at the Press Centre admitted to the unethical behaviour but again sent a WhatsApp message to the MD on Wednesday, November 14, 2018, in which he threatened to go ahead to publish damaging stories against the ECG boss as punishment for leaking to the GJA the five million cedi demand he had made.

The GJA added that the “association finds the behaviour of Nana Gyampa , before, during and after its investigation as unrepentant, arrogant, reprehensible, unacceptable , mercenary and a clear breach of Article 10 of the GJA Code of Ethics which states that a journalist “ does not accept a bribe or any form of inducement to influence the performance of his or her professional duties.

“The CID must, therefore, investigate the case further and allow the law to take its course.”

Below is the full statement

The Ghana Journalists Association has referred to the Police CID a case in which a reporter of Accra FM, Nana Okyere Gyampa, is alleged to have persistently demanded five million cedis from the Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) as a condition for dropping a “negative story” against the company.

The action follows preliminary investigations and interrogation of the reporter by the GJA on Tuesday, November 13, 2018. Nana Gyampa admitted during the hearing at the Ghana International Press Centre that it was unethical for him to demand money from the MD.

He, however, did that in WhatsApp messages to the MD in order to compel him to end alleged malpractices at ECG. Nana Gyampa could not tell whether he had cross-checked the information he had. After the interrogation, Nana Gyampa again sent a WhatsApp message to the MD today (Wednesday November 14, 2018) in which he threatened to go ahead to publish damaging stories against the ECG boss as punishment for leaking to the GJA the five million cedi demand he had made.

The Association finds the behaviour of Nana Gyampa , before, during and after its investigation as unrepentant, arrogant, reprehensible, unacceptable , mercenary and a clear breach of Article 10 of the GJA Code of Ethics which states that a journalist “ does not accept a bribe or any form of inducement to influence the performance of his or her professional duties.”

The CID must therefore investigate the case further and allow the law to take its course.