
Audio By Carbonatix
Former Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Professor Kwame Karikari says any attempt by the court to block public screeing of Anas Aremeyaw Anas' videotape that exposes corrupt judges would be unconstitutional.
Prof. Kwame Karikari who is also a Communications Lecturer at the University of Ghana was speaking Monday evening on Adom FM’s “Burning Issues” programme with Afia Pokua.
Some High Court Judges accused of taking bribes are heading to court to stop plans to broadcast a video that purports to record their corrupt activities.
One of the 14 High Court judges Justice Paul Dery has filed a writ is seeking 17 reliefs from the High Court.
The judge fears that “the intended public screening of the contents of the audio-visual recordings to the public by the 1st Defendant is prejudicial to the Plaintiff's right to a fair hearing”.
The investigative Journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, has also come under pressure to abandon plans to broadcast a video documentary of his exposé , but Prof. Kwame Karikari believe that such pressures cannot prevent public screening of the video.
A public screening of the video is slated for September 22 and 23 at the Accra International Conference Centre.
Recently, a former President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) Sam Okudzeto and some seasonal lawyers have insisted that any attempts by journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas to show the video tapes of the judges taking bribes will be unfair and for that matter it should be shelved but Prof. Kwame Karikari disagrees with such opinion.
“I’m not a lawyer but any court that will place an injunction on Anas' videotape from showing to the public will be censorship. Our constitution does not encourage censorship, so no court can prevent him from showing the video” Prof. Karikari stated.
“From the point of journalism I don’t think any court or an individual can prevent Anas from showing the said video,” the founder of MFWA emphasized.
“Any judge who want to go to court to prevent Anas from showing the video have the right as a citizen but in by my humble opinion I think those writ will not hold” Prof. Karikari emphasized.
Lawyers for some of the lower court judges under the judicial council investigation have filed a writ at the High Court saying the enquiry has no basis in law.
The Chief Justice is set to examine responses by the judges before deciding whether to open a formal investigation into the accusations, in which case, they would also be suspended.
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