The Speaker of Parliament, Mr Ebenezer Sekyi Hughes, has exhorted journalists, especially members of the Parliamentary Press Corps (PPC), to report facts devoid of opinions and personal biases on the proceedings on the floor of the House. This is because "journalism plays an important role in strengthening parliamentary democracy". Mr Sekyi Hughes was speaking at the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected executives of the PPC. He said the public deserved to know the true facts regarding all issues, adding that "if you tell the public the facts, nobody gets annoyed". He expressed the hope that the executive would stay on course and work assiduously with their members to advance the frontiers of democracy, and gave the assurance that his office would give them all the support they needed to make that a reality. A High Court Judge, Justice S. A. Brobbey, who administered the oath of office on behalf of the Chief Justice, Her Ladyship, Justice Georgina Wood, said that without an efficient press system, the work of Parliament would not be heard of. That, he said, placed a huge responsibility on members of the PPC as they needed to turn out accurate reports on happenings in Parliament. He reminded journalists that they would be criticised for their work and charged them to take such criticisms in good faith, and consider them as challenges and not as attempts to sabotage them. Justice Brobbey told the executive that an onerous task was placed on them to ensure that the corps attained the highest professional and journalistic standards, saying that "to whom much is given much is expected". The President of the Ghana Journalists Association, Mr Ransford Tetteh, said that the media was committed to partnering the Legislature to find solutions to the problems confronting the nation. He assured the leadership of Parliament that members of the PPC would "continue to report accurately on the proceedings in the House to help our people follow the country's development in order to offer suggestions and make criticisms". The media, he stressed, would remain resolute in their bid to hold public office holders accountable to ensure judicious use of resources for the benefit of the people. Mr Tetteh urged the leadership of the House to work in concert with media personnel in order to build their capacity since responsible media freedom was one of the benchmarks of democracy and good governance. He cautioned journalists to distance themselves from any form of manipulation that could endanger their freedom and independence because what they wrote influenced the way people thought. The Minority Leader in Parliament, Mr Alban Bagbin, called on members of the PPC to strive to improve on their impartiality in reporting on Parliamentary proceedings and that it behoved them to try and become specialists in parliamentary practice as the attrition rate of parliamentarians was quite high. He also commended the PPC for bringing what was happening in the House to the doorstep of the people. The Dean of the corps, Mr Andrew Edwin Arthur, flanked by his vice, Mr Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah and the other executives, expressed the hope that members of the PPC would continue to support the executive to carry out the task of providing accurate and unbiased information for public consumption. He expressed regret at the infiltration of the journalism profession by charlatans, a situation which he said, had not only dented the image of journalism but also whipped up negative sentiments against the profession. Mr Arthur stressed that he and his colleagues were determined to expose any charlatan who might attempt to infiltrate the Parliamentary Press Corps. The other members of the executive include CobIa Kudoto, Secretary; Clare Banoeng Yakubu, Treasurer; Nana Yaw Asare, Organising Secretary; Karen Nana Ama Afriyie, Assistant Secretary; with Mr Stephen Kwayie as an executive member. The ceremony was also used to inaugurate a five-member planning committee to oversee the activities of the 15th anniversary of the press corps. Source: Daily Graphic