Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour, President of the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA), has urged Interior Minister Mr Ambrose Dery to act swiftly on the attacks on Upper West Regional Chairman of the GJA, Sualah Abdul Wahab, by senior officers of the Ghana Immigration Service.
“We expect him to act swiftly just as he did in his reaction to the IGP’s leaked tape,” the GJA President noted.
He made the announcement during a press conference on Tuesday, July 18, 2023, in response to recent rampant attacks on journalists.
Mr Dwumfour, for example, complained about an Immigration Officer pointing a gun at the Upper West Regional Chairman of GJA, Sualah Abdul-Wahab, and threatening to shoot him on June 20, 2023, without any provocation.
He said the journalist was travelling from Wa to Bolgatanga by public transport to attend a workshop on climate change when the vus he was on stopped at the Immigration checkpoint for a routine check of the Ghan card of passengers.
The passengers, he explained, disembarked from the vehicle, after which the journalist requested to use a kettle belonging to the Immigration Officers to perform ablution in a make-shift roofing sheet structure believed to be a urinal.
But when the Immigration officers refused his request, he returned the kettle (buta) and went into the bush to urinate.
He went on to say that while he was on his way, one of the officers told Sualah to cross to the other side of the road to urinate.
Sualah saw no reason to risk his life by crossing the highway just to urinate when it was safe to do so in the bush on the side of the road where he was.
The Immigration Officer, out of anger, shouted: ” am asking you to cross the road to urinate and you are challenging me”.
For challenging him, the officer allegedly cocked his gun and threatened to “blow off” his head.
This compelled the other passengers to flee the scene and urinate.
He claimed that when the journalist returned, the officer threatened to shoot him again.
Assistant Superintendent of Immigration (ASI) Anim Agyepong has been identified as the officer.
The GJA President went on to say that the officer entered his office, pulled out a pistol, and threatened to shoot the journalist because he was “too well-known.”
After placing the gun on a chair, the officer attempted to physically assault the journalist but was restrained by his colleagues.
Later, another officer asked the journalist to apologise to the ASI, but the passengers refused, claiming that they were the victims who deserved an apology.
He emphasised that the situation necessitates an immediate investigation.
He stated that the GJA considers the officer’s conduct to be unprofessional and gross, and that sanctions are warranted.
He revealed that the GJA has since filed a complaint with the Immigration Service and the Interior Ministry.
He also mentioned the arrack to a GBC journalist in Kumasi who was reporting on miners trapped in a pit.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana