There is a constitutional prohibition against free speech before it becomes public or it is released. This concept is what is known in constitutional law as a "prior restraint " of speech. Apllied to Dr. Kofi Ellison's recent piece on "Our New National Guaardian" news paper, should we anticipate or condemn the type of journalism Mr. Kofi Badu is going to practice in his soon to be launched National Guardian before it is publication?. May be!.
May be. Because this once brilliant sports writer who ithe late 60's metarmophosed into a columnist and an editor-publisher has his hands unclean , dripping wet with all the infected fluid that besmeared the swollen hands of Ghana journalistc political culture . His track record as was enumerated in Dr. EWllion's eye-popping and percepetive piece about his role in the Ghana's post independent journalism sticks out like a sour thumb and does not offer an impressive legacy..
I hope he has grown and matured enough to realize that his brand of journalism is out of date and will not be tolerated by a free people who want to guard their new found freedom with thier lifes .That he and his cabal of idelogical believers cannot hold the country at ransom again just to serve their personal political and egomaniac agenda.
Ghana has suffered enough from his likes and the socalled intellectual collaborators. This is country is gradually rebuilding and rehabilitating herself from the past onslaught and ravages of self appointed and aggrandized - corrupt- politicians-cum- pseudo- civilian-military adventurists who have held the country at ransom and at near death choke hold for the greatrer part of her near 50 year post independent chekerd history.
There is a new paradigm in Ghana's political culture. Ghana is for all Ghanains who want to live in a free society where freedom , justice and constitutional democracy thrive . For any one individual and his cabal of friends to subvert the people aspiration amounts to killing off the dreams of the present and unborn generations . This is unacceptable . Next time this will be mortally resisted, if need be, by freedom loving Ghanaians.
Mr. Badu under the new aegis of freedom of speech the country is enjoying, a citizen can publish a news paper to inform , educate, entertain and encourage civil discourse among the citizenry.However, as a competent and responsible jouunalist one must keep in perpective the mantra of a very progressive and popular media in U.S (The Fox News Network, FNC) which operates under a cardinal principle, the concept of "Fair and Balance" news reporting. This has paid off well for FNC to be become the largerst watched cable net work news in U.S.
Hopefully, Kofi Badu is a born again democrat and will adopt FOX News guiding journalistic princpiles. This is how one practices healthy journalism in a free and democratic country. This the vision for post Rawlings Ghana. I recommend that to be also be the adopted motto of Kofi Badu's National Guardian .
Views expressed by the author(s) do not necessarily reflect those of GhanaHomePage.
