A governance and legal officer at CDD Ghana, Kwadwo Asante has impressed on government and its agencies to improve upon media freedom in the country. Speaking to Joy News, Mr Asante expressed his concern at the way media freedom has been handled in Ghana and underscored the importance to entrench the democratic principles which protect the media and individuals as a whole. “The way in which some of the security agencies and some of the government agencies have handled the issue of media freedom reminds us that we still need to work very, very hard to entrench some of the democratic principles that we all cherish and have come to accept that it is important for our democracy,” he stated. Meanwhile in a separate interview with Joy News, the Executive Director of IMANI Ghana, Franklin Cudjoe has patted government on the back for its intention to deliver on its “Year of Action” theme but cautioned against the temptation to indulge in over-spending. Mr Cudjoe pointed to the past experiences of the NPP government where according to him, there was spending far in excess of what the economy could absorb. “The President himself has said it is going to be a year of action [and] in our cause to be doing this, we should also be watching that we don’t overspend because we don’t want to get into that tailspin that got us into trouble after 2008 when so much was spent outside of the economy and you couldn’t trace it and left us with a deficit” he said. Mr Cudjoe, in reacting to events that shaped up the year 2010, bemoaned the manner in which Parliament hurriedly passed the Petroleum Revenue Management Bill, insisting that it could have been tackled in a better manner. “Look at the debate that surrounded the Petroleum Revenue Management bill; it was completely funny even though it was expected. It appears as if the government was in a hurry to get things done quickly,” he stated. Mr. Cudjoe added “it appears that we could have things in a much more better manner [but] unfortunately, certain aspects of the petroleum management bill are still hanging. Meanwhile, we have already made projections as to what we should use the oil money for.” He also expressed his surprise in the fact that the initial STX deal was almost signed by the government even though it contained flaws in the document and it was not until his outfit raised the alarm that the deal was called off in the last minute. Story by Fidel Amoah/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana