The Ghana Fact-checking Coalition, a collective of fact-checking organisations and CSOs working on information integrity, have observed with worry the blatant attempt by radio and TV presenter, Oheneba Nana Asiedu, of Kumasi-based Wontumi FM to disinform the Ghanaian public about the December 7 general elections.
In a video that has gone viral across many social media platforms, the broadcaster claimed on live radio that electorates are allowed to vote on different dates depending on the presidential candidate of their choice.
The presenter’s claim is outrightly false, scandalous and a brazen effort to disrupt the massive civic education campaigns mounted by many stakeholders to minimize voter apathy and the incidence of rejected ballots during the presidential and parliamentary elections.
The Ghana Fact-checking Coalition is particularly alarmed because the activities of such bad actors who implement disinformation campaigns often execute their disruptive strategies under the cloak of anonymity that social media and the internet afford them. Oheneba Nana Asiedu’s attempt to sow this kind of disinformation on live radio is recklessly bold and must be condemned by all stakeholders.
The Coalition would also want to use this opportunity to deplore a similar video that emerged recently on social media where a panelist clad in the paraphernalia of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) was spotted on the same Wontumi radio platform disinforming the public. The panelist claimed that electorates who insist on voting for John Dramani Mahama, the presidential candidate of the opposition New Democratic Congress (NDC), must thumbprint all the candidates on the ballot paper from number 1 to number 8, where John Mahama is found on the paper.
The Coalition is worried about what is becoming a trend where radio stations, the most accessible media form in the country, are becoming the platform for spreading such dangerous narratives. The traditional media, including radio, has become the source of accurate information for many when they are uncertain about viral information on the internet and social media. It is therefore distressing when the radio stations are being turned into avenues for spreading disinformation and counter-productive narratives.
We have noted that the Ghana Police Service have swiftly intervened and arrested Oheneba Nana Asiedu. While we commend them for their immediate action, we would want to raise caution on the process of prosecution as it may have ramifications for the sense of freedom of many journalists and media houses who are playing a crucial role in covering the general elections.
The Ghana Fact-checking Coalition calls on the management of Wontumi FM, especially its owner, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, who’s also the Ashanti Region Chairman of the NPP, to swiftly condemn the act of the broadcaster, cause him to apologise for spreading disinformation on their platform and institute commensurate punitive actions against him.
We urge the leadership of the ruling New Patriotic Party to condemn the false information whose objective is to their benefit. In the spirit of free, fair and credible elections, the NPP must dissociate itself from such disinformation acts.
The Coalition also calls on all stakeholders, state and non-state actors, to openly condemn and act against the broadcaster’s disinformation attempt as such narratives can set back the progress made in Ghana’s democratic consolidation.
The disinformation campaigns are being widely amplified on Facebook, TikTok and X as well, although they contravene the community standards of these platforms. The Ghana Fact-Checking Coalition is by this notice also demanding the internet platforms take immediate remedial actions to stop the false narrative and further take steps to address the weaponization of mis/disinformation on their platforms.
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