Roland Affail Monney, GJA President
The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has introduced a special awards category at the 25th edition of the GJA awards for journalists who have contributed to the fight against the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
Journalists with works related to Covid-19 were encouraged to apply, as the association had duly opened nomination for its members across the country.
This year’s event, which has been slated for October 24, will be organized virtually and held under the theme “Covid-19 and Credible Presidential and Parliamentary Elections.”
The Vice-President of the GJA, Linda Asante-Agyei, made this known when she announced the entry requirements at the event launch in Accra on Wednesday.
She disclosed that with the exception of the Covid-19 coverage category that considered works in 2020, there would be seven other awards categories which would solicit for works only published from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019.
Members of the national executive and awards committees are barred from filing for the awards, while entrants may not submit more than three published works. Each entry should not feature in more than one category.
She also said that print and online entrants were required to submit a clear original copy of their work alongside five photocopies of each entry, while radio and television entrants were required to submit an audio recording in addition to five authenticated copies of the original broadcast script.
“The GJA is not bound to give an award in a category if it does not merit one,” she added.
The Executive Chairman of Jonah Capital, Sir Sam Jonah, who was the keynote speaker, advised the media to chart a path of peace, justice and unity while remaining focused on the pandemic.
Journalists, he said, should not be eluded by the euphoria of the electioneering period that had a high tendency of causing people to lose sense of restraint and judgment as they ignored safety protocols.
“I need not remind my fellow Ghanaians that elections are not a matter of life and death, however the battle against Covid-19 is a fight for survival,” he said.
The President of GJA, Affail Monney, for his part, said even though journalists in their line of duty had been infected by the virus, the growing political tensions and challenges associated with the virus did not create room for rest among journalists.
“Physical distancing and other protocols in response to the rampaging pandemic leaves the political parties with no choice than to switch the battle field for the elections to the media,” he said.
The situation, he said, provided an opportunity for journalists to determine the outcome of elections by “scrutinizing the cycle of electoral processes to ensure they pass the test of transparency, inclusiveness, accountability and competitiveness.”
By Issah Mohammed