Hon Jerry Ahmed Shaib
Weija-Gbawe

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for indulging me.

Mr Speaker, yesterday, 12th February, 2026, marked another significant commemoration of World Radio Day. A global observance proclaimed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and formally adopted through the UN's General Assembly Resolution.

Mr Speaker, this day celebrates radio as a powerful medium that shapes public discourse, preserves cultural heritage, facilitates democratic participation, and serves as a critical instrument for information dissemination across geographical, socio-economic, and technological divides. World Radio Day recognises radio’s unique capacity to reach diverse audiences, foster community dialogues, and provide platforms for marginalised voices that may otherwise remain unheard in our national conversations.

Mr Speaker, the history of radio broadcasting in Ghana is inseparably linked to our colonial past and represents a fascinating evolution from an instrument of colonial administration to a vibrant pillar of democratic governance and cultural expression. The early years of radio in Ghana were characterised by centralised state control, with broadcasting serving primarily governmental information dissemination and nation-building objectives during the Nkrumah era. The landscape of radio broadcasting in Ghana has undergone a dramatic transformation since the liberalisation of the airwaves in the 1990s, when the National Media Commission began licensing private radio stations following the promulgation of the 1992 Constitution, which guaranteed freedom of expression and media pluralism.

According to the National Communications Authority's 2024 annual report, Ghana now boasts over 450 licensed radio stations across the country, comprising state-owned broadcasters, commercial stations, community radio stations, and campusbased broadcasters, representing an extraordinary proliferation that has fundamentally democratised access to information and transformed Ghana's media landscape. Mr Speaker, the role that radio has played in strengthening Ghana's democracy cannot be overstated, and this House must acknowledge the medium's vital contribution to our political development and democratic consolidation.

Radio serves multiple critical functions within our democratic architecture, beginning with its fundamental role in information dissemination, ensuring that citizens across all 16 regions, regardless of literacy levels or economic status, have access to news about Government policies, parliamentary proceedings, electoral processes, and civic responsibilities. The United Nations Development Programmes 2023 Assessment of Media and Democracy in West Africa highlighted Ghana as a regional leader in press freedom, noting that radio's penetration into rural areas and peri-urban communities has significantly enhanced political participation and governmental accountability.

Mr Speaker, radio stations across Ghana have consistently provided platforms for marginalised and vulnerable populations, including women, youth, persons with disabilities, and ethnic minorities, to articulate their concerns, challenge injustice, and participate in national conversations from which they might otherwise be excluded.

Mr Speaker, the watchdog function performed by radio journalists cannot be underestimated, as investigative reporting broadcasts across radio stations has exposed corruption, inefficiency and malfeasance in both public and private sectors, compelling institutional reforms and protecting public interest. Mr Speaker, during election cycles, radio serves as the primary medium through which political parties communicate their manifestos. Candidates engage with constituents, and the Electoral Commission (E. C.) disseminates vital information about registration, voting procedures, and results, making radio indispensable to the electoral process.

Mr Speaker, as World Radio Day was commemorated yesterday, the Government of Ghana is respectfully asked to issue an urgent call for the creation of an enabling environment within which media institutions can function effectively without fear, intimidation, or arbitrary interference. The Government must demonstrate its commitment to press freedom by ensuring that radio stations and journalists are protected from attacks, harassment, and violence perpetrated by security agencies and political operatives or any other actors seeking to silence critical voices. To my fellow Hon Members of Parliament, we must commit to enacting robust laws that institutionalise protections for radio broadcasting and ensure that sectors' sustainable growth and development.

In commemoration of this important day, we all, regardless of political affiliation, must champion media freedom in our constituencies, speak out against attacks on journalists, and recognise that a free and vibrant press ultimately serves the interests of democracy and national development rather than partisan political objectives. Media owners must ensure that their investment in the professional development and capacity building of radio practitioners, ensuring that journalists and broadcasters possess the requisite skills, ethical grounding, and resources necessary to discharge their responsibilities with fairness, accuracy, and integrity.

Mr Speaker, media owners must resist the temptation toward sensationalism and yellow journalism that prioritises ratings and revenue over truth and public interest. Radio stations must establish and enforce rigorous editorial standards, fact-checking mechanisms, and ethical guidelines that prevent the spread of misinformation and disinformation. Media organisations must provide adequate remuneration and working conditions for journalists, recognising that poorly compensated and insecure media workers are vulnerable to corruption and ethical practices that undermine the profession's credibility.

Mr Speaker, as we conclude this commemoration, let us remember that radio is far more than a technological medium or a commercial enterprise. Radio represents the very lifeblood of democratic discourse, the amplifier of citizen voices, the guardian against governmental excess, and the bridge connecting our diverse communities into a united or unified national conversation. From the earliest broadcast during colonial administration to the current explosion of stations across our nation, radio has evolved into a crucial democratic infrastructure that informs, educates, entertains and empowers our people.

The health of our democracy is directly related to the vitality of our media sector. And the freedom of our radio stations to broadcast without fear or favour stands as a fundamental measure of our commitment to constitutional governance and human rights. Mr Speaker, let me highly commend the likes of Chairman General Kwame Sefa Kayi, OB of Asempa FM, Nana Yaw Kesse of Peace FM, Bola Ray, Bernard Avle, Kofi Kum Bilson, Kojo Yankson, Samuel Atta Mensah and all radio presenters.

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for this opportunity.

Hon Abdul Kabiru Tiah Mahama
Walewale

Thank you, Mr Speaker. Mr Speaker, it will be amiss that such a brilliant and well-researched Statement is made by the respected Member for Weija-Gbawe, without comment from Members of the Committee on Information and Communications.

Mr Speaker, the foundation for that Statement is grounded in the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana. Article 162 has established the freedom of the media, and Article 21 specifically guarantees the freedom of expression for every person, which includes the freedom of the media and press. These constitutional guarantees are for every person, and it is for good reasons the framers of this Constitution made for us those laws. 5:40 p.m. Mr Speaker, as we celebrate World Radio Day, we need to remind ourselves that it is in furtherance of this Constitution that the criminal libel laws were removed or repealed from our statutes, and that leaders of old and people who have been in this House before us, saw the need to repeal any law that seeks to inhibit or fetter on the freedom of expression, and the fourth estate of the realm was to be given unfettered access to report without fear or favour.

Mr Speaker, the radio is one of the foremost tools we have used to advance development in this country. I remember that, as a young boy, I listened to most of what was happening in Accra on Savannah Radio, a national broadcaster in the Northern Region. Radio has become a tool for national development. We had what we call farm radio, where rural farmers get to learn about the rudiments and agricultural practices through the radio.

Mr Speaker, we had a radio for health, where we got educated on basic health promotion, including personal hygiene. The radio has become an indispensable tool for national development. As we celebrate this day, we need to ask ourselves whether the national radio still has the role that was prepared and played of old by the current radio we have? I beg to answer this question in the negative. There seems to be a shift of attention away from national discourses or things that will promote national unity and development to issues that promote clicks and likes. It appears that if a radio station is not a merchant of controversy, it has no listenership. I think that operators of radio stations would have to recalibrate and relook at how they see their radio stations and how they see and use their platform to promote national cohesion and development.

Mr Speaker, but as we talk about the importance of national radio or radio to national development, even the very essence of participative democracy and inclusive governance, the radio has a cardinal role to play. I think that we cannot overflog the importance of radio to our national development. Mr Speaker, the threat of new media is a great threat to the survival of radio and these radio stations, as we even mentioned, are a source of entertainment, education, and information for people who are located in rural areas. For any nation, if one has a radio, one can listen to whatever is happening in any part of the country, especially once a radio network is within the area. But the proliferation of new media is one of the threats to traditional media, and much so for people who are in rural areas.

Mr Speaker, how do we position our national media in line with Article 163 of the Constitution to enable the national radio station play its role? I also want to acknowledge the abuse of radio, as my Colleagues have stated. We know of the Rwanda experience, Mr Speaker, and I commend the National Communication Authority (NCA) in line with ensuring and instilling discipline in sanitising the radio space. They have received calls to revoke the licences of certain radio stations. But we need to caution them that the abuse of the platform is a recipe for danger or chaos, because we have had it happen in Rwanda, where radio stations were the basis for a genocide. I think that we need to be careful about it.

I also want to note the threat to Article 121 of the Constitution. In this country, the freedom of the media is endangered. The editorial independence of journalists is threatened in this country, and I want to use GhOne TV as an example. Lily Mohammed of GhOne TV expressed views that criticised a government official. Less than 24 hours later, she was asked to withdraw that statement, the media house apologised and the statement was pulled down. There was nothing defamatory about that statement. There was nothing libellous about that statement. But Lily Mohammed was asked to withdraw. That is a huge threat. Mr Speaker, I will conclude. But I want to make the point clear that I am not violating the rules of this House.

Hon Ayariga Mahama
Bawku Central

Mr Speaker, thank you very much. I think that, Hon Colleagues, should try as much as possible, and I mean no disrespect to anybody, defer to the Chair.

The Speaker gives guidance. Hon Members may not be happy, but how you react may also spoil your case. I think Hon Members should be careful what they are doing. It is not good practice. I am on my feet speaking about the same thing, and the Hon Member is sitting there, talking back at me. It does not function that way. I have been in this Chamber for more than a decade, so please be careful. Do not do that. Do not extend it to the Speaker.

The Hon Member may not like something, but he must not respond that way. If we all start behaving that way, this Chamber will not be governable by anybody. That is why we have a Speaker. It is not always the case that we will all think that the Speaker is treating us fairly, but so be it. We live with it because whatever it is, they will have to exercise control over the conversations that are taking place in the Chamber. This is a very important Statement, and I think the Hon Kabiru was doing very well in his commentary. In fact, I noted so many things that I wanted to say, but I noticed that he was covering all of them, and we encourage the younger ones in the Chamber to do well. Sometimes I come and sit here, and the whole day I say nothing.

For today, I would have said nothing, but I just felt that World Radio Day is such an important matter that I should also lend my support to the Statement that has been made. I want to focus on responsible radio practice, which is a theme that has recurred several times in the comments made by some Members of the House. I was going to build on what he said about Rwanda as an example. The genocide in Rwanda, from what the historians have said, was largely promoted using the radio. On radio, some tribes were demonised, and on radio, the killing, the maiming, the humiliation of some ethnic groups was idealised as if it were ideal to do that, or legitimate to go and kill, and that was what really enabled the genocide to occur. So, while radio is a powerful tool for development, as has been emphasised in today’s Statements, it can be very destructive if not managed well.

I come from a constituency that has experienced a lot of violence in recent times, and consistently, radio has been the platform that people have used to incite violence. In the North, sometimes we listen to radio, and we could see that people are deliberately inciting violence. Then of course, the issues of freedom of expression comes up. Recently, the radio stations have been participatory in the sense that they allow phoneins. Sometimes, the host in their commentary, they are guided because they are professional.

The problem is those who are phoning in, who are not professionals, who are not guided in the way that they speak on radio and they are faceless. So, they can be the ones actually spewing out all the violence, promoting the violence, promoting ethnocentrism and promoting religious intolerance and some of the hosts deliberately allow them. They are not journalists, and they have not been trained and yet, they have become regular fixtures on some radio stations. Every evening, they will phone in, and when they phone in, they will say things that should never be said on radio. When the security agencies come after the station, then there is an issue of violation of freedom of expression or press freedom. Yet, we have a society that is 65haracterized by its diversity.

We are diverse ethnically, religiously and in terms of our various social and economic status, and these differences can easily be exploited by demagogues to cause divisions, to cause anarchy, and to bring down everything that we have invested in. That is why we need to be heard on World Radio Day, cautioning that while radio is a powerful tool for building society positively, it is also a powerful weapon for destroying and raising the entire society to the ground.

So, I urge Colleagues in our various engagements in our constituencies to try and then talk to those who own the radio stations, the hosts, about their responsibility to help us maintain the integrity of our democracy. We go around the country, and this country is blessed with a lot of literacy. I would say that a lot of the literacy that has been achieved in this country is largely a function of the radio stations, even more than the classrooms. Our democracy is doing well largely because of the radio stations, because of the way journalists and radio stations continue to educate the general populace. So, let us keep it that way. Let us protect radio freedom.

Dr Kabiru has already spoken a lot about the issues of financing, the issues about technology, and the threat to radio as a result of the new media that is emerging. So, I will not belabour the point, but to commend the maker of the Statement for such an important Statement on an auspicious day like this. We missed the opportunity yesterday to make it, but better late than never.

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker.