The President of the Ghana Journalist Association has defended the decision to handpick ace investigative Journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas as the 2016 GJA Journalist of the year.

Affail Monney said the decision was neither an "aberration", nor "inconsistent" with the practices of the GJA.

"One doesn't need proof that Anas stood out as the best amongst all journalist in 2015," he stated in a feisty defence.

The GJA has come under some criticism after its executives handpicked Anas Aremeyaw Anas for the highest award for journalists.

Reports say Ghana's investigative collosus did not make any entry for the award but was crowned the highest award winner, a decision that has triggered some controversy.

Two days after the award ceremony regional associations in the Western and Central Region criticised the process as lacking transparency.

They chided the National Executives for not consulting them before taking that decision.

However other regional associations in an interesting twist criticised the two regional associations for daring to criticise the national executives.

Just when the dust appeared to be settling on the wave criticism, the Institute of Financial and Economic Journalists (IFEJ),  which is an affiliate of the GJA has waded into the award controversy.

President of IFEJ, Lyoyd Evans in an interview with Joy News said if the GJA wanted the award to be at the pleasure of its executives they should be bold  enough to communicate it.

He did not understand why the GJA would constitute an awards committee with a terms of reference to select the award winners only to turn around and handpick another journalist by themselves.

He claimed the decision to award Anas Aremeyaw Anas was taken on the day of the award ceremony, something Myjoyonline.com cannot independently confirm.

He said an award, as important as this, should  be organised as transparently as possible to prevent the unnecessary controversy that comes with it.

But the President of the GJA is not bothered by the criticisms.

He said the GJA executives did not err in deciding to award Anas Aremeyaw Anas for his courageous investigative piece in 2015.

Seth Kwame Boateng

The ace journalist took the country by storm when he released videos of a two year undercover investigative piece which unraveled how judges in Ghana's courts traded justice for sheep, goat, money and any other thing on offer.

The judges were named, shamed and later dismissed.

Affail Monney said that act of bravery by Anas cannot go unrewarded. Even though there were minor protestation by the executives of the GJA, Affail Monney said majority of them rooted for the decision to handpick Anas Aremeyaw Anas.

"Not all the executives agreed. We are six in number and majority agreed," he stated.

He said the highest GJA award is the "prerogative of the executive" and not "dependent on the number of awards won on the night by a single journalist."

The Multimedia group took the highest number of awards with last year's Journalist of the Year Seth Kwame Boateng bagging three awards. Beatric Adu, Joseph Opoku Gakpo and Benedict Owusu all took awards under different categories.

Affail Monney said he has no regrets championing the cause to have Anas Aremeyaw Anas awarded as the GJA Journalist of the year for 2016.