The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has backed the Ghana Journalists Association's (GJA) decision to impose a total media blackout on the Fisheries and Aquaculture Development Minister, Mavis Hawa Koomson.

The GJA directed journalists to avoid covering any activities involving the Awutu Senya East MP following an attack on a journalist allegedly by the MP's thugs during the NPP’s parliamentary aspirants’ vetting in Cape Coast.

Read also: https://www.myjoyonline.com/boycott-of-hawa-koomson-until-attackers-of-cape-coast-journalist-are-apprehended-gja-president/

MFWA, in a statement issued on January 28 condemned the attack stating that “the MFWA believes that it is time for the media community to take drastic measures to ensure that the rights of journalists are protected and safety of journalists guaranteed.”

“The MFWA commends the GJA for the bold decisive decision and wishes to join the Association in appealing to all media houses and journalists in the country to adhere to the decision of the GJA,” portions of the statement read.

They also called for the media to include all activities of the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development, as long as she remains the sector minister.

Read also: https://www.myjoyonline.com/hawa-koomson-appeals-to-gja-to-reconsider-its-blacklisting-decision/

MFWA also urged the leadership of the New Patriotic Party to demand answers from Hawa Koomson and to compel the Minister to identify the perpetrators for disciplinary action.

This, MFWA explained is because “the assailants of the journalist, having explicitly declared their action to be in retaliation for alleged insults against her, and having denied sanctioning the assault, the Minister owes it to herself to help the police find the thugs whose action seeks to bring her into disrepute.”

Meanwhile, the Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Development has threatened legal action against the GJA President for allegedly implicating her in the supposed attack on a journalist in the Central Region.

According to the MP, the call by the GJA President for the media to blacklist her over the incident is unfair because the GJA has not properly investigated the alleged assault on a Cape FM journalist. 

She said she did not take the matter seriously initially because she was focused on her parliamentary primaries.

She is thus demanding a retraction of the media blackout statement or the presentation of evidence supporting the assault allegation.

“I had planned to respond to the GJA declaration, but my election activities didn’t allow me. Now that I am done with the election, I can respond. I was in Cape Coast for vetting, and I even spoke to the media after my vetting, but no one approached me about the issue. I was quite surprised when I heard about the assault in the media space.”