Dignitaries present at the launch
Ghanaians and media personnel have been cautioned to be mindful of their utterances to avoid hate speech, misinformation, and disinformation as the country gears up for the December 7 elections.
The caution was given by the Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Mr. Sulemana Braimah and the Chairperson of the National Peace Council (NPC), Dr. Ernest Adu-Gyamfi, at a national forum held in Accra yesterday.
The forum, organised by MFWA and NPC and funded by the Ford Foundation, formed part of national efforts to enhance a culture of tolerance and harmony, information hygiene, and inclusive social and political narratives to help strengthen the country’s peace and democracy before, during, and after the December 7 elections.
It was organised in partnership with the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), National House of Chiefs, Christian Council of Ghana, Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council, the Office of the National Chief Imam, Ghana Federation of Disability Organisation, Queenmothers’ Foundation, and the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA).
At the forum, the “National Multi-Stakeholder Coalition Against Hate Speech, Polarising, and Toxic narratives” was also launched.
This coalition will serve as a platform for consensus building and collective action against harmful rhetoric that can foment polarisation and violence, particularly in the context of elections.
Mr. Braimah noted that the discussion on hate, misinformation, and disinformation had become important considering the democratic recession around the world, particularly in West Africa.
He observed that a recent report by the African Centre for Strategic Studies revealed that 15 documented disinformation and misinformation campaigns targeted North Africa, 33 targeted East Africa, 12 each for Southern and Central Africa, and 72 campaigns targeted 13 West African countries including Ghana.
Such campaigns, which emanated from both internal and external sources, Mr. Braimah said, had become successful because elections across the continent were seen to provide fertile grounds for disinformation campaigns.
Additionally, he said Ghana had many conditions such as a polarised political environment, polarised and partisan traditional media landscape, and the sharing of boundaries with countries that were targeted for disinformation campaigns that fostered hate speech, misinformation, disinformation and polarised narratives, hence, the need for a collaborative effort in addressing the issue.
Dr. Gyamfi said it was important for the country, including all relevant stakeholders, to continue with the activities and initiatives that had made it overcome forces that tried to disrupt “our democracy.”
He further pledged NPC commitment to the sustenance and protection of the country’s peace before, during, and after the December 7 elections through frequent sensitisation programmes.
The Senior Programmes Officer, Office of West Africa, Ford Foundation, Mr. Mac-Ikemenjima Dabesaki, expressed profound gratitude to MFWA and the NPC for the forum as it would help advance democracy not only in Ghana, but across the African continent.
BY Nafisatu Abdul Razak