Accra, Sept. 15, GNA - A Ghanaian Journalist in North America has added his voice to calls that untrained Journalists should go back to school to get some training as part of efforts to rid the profession of charlatans.

He further questioned the motive and basis for the Award of Journalist of the Year, calling it "Journalism going down the stream" in an article titled "Journalism Gone Astray", posted on the Ghana home Page (www.ghanaweb.com) on the Internet.

Mr Ato Aidoo, formerly of the Features Desk at Daily Graphic, said the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) was under siege by people, who think they have distinguished themselves in this noble profession. He asked Mr Komla Dumor, who was wrongly given the best Journalist Award for 2000, when he was not a member of the GJA, to return the award and go back to school to learn to become a real Journalist to silence his critics.

He noted that what people of his ilk fail to cherish is that, "we all err, and that bad decisions can be reversed to preserve unity".

Commenting on a paper entitled; 'The Journalist's Manifesto' put out by the Ghana News Agency Chapter of the GJA, Mr Aidoo said it "received widespread praise in North America" and described it as a masterpiece. He said, "the 'Manifesto' attracted immense readership. What media analysts say is that, it further confirms GNA not only as one of the best news agencies in the world, but as an educator, teaching people, who take the profession for granted".

Mr Aidoo, an alumni of Rutgers University, said it was the view of a large number of Journalists in America and Canada that: "Standing apart, as seemingly neutral observers while the Profession collapses is not an option for Ghanaian Journalists, "even if other Journalists wished it were."

He said, "any society or professional grouping that underrates Journalists must be fooling itself, saying ... for those who love Journalism the chief attraction is that it offers the chance for Journalists to claim their central place in society, deservedly so, but you must be formally trained."

He called for the accreditation of members of the GJA, saying an association of formally trained Journalists was long overdue. Mr Aidoo paid tribute to his colleagues at Daily Graphic, TV3, Ghanaian Times and GNA, saying they represented the future of Journalism in Ghana.