The drama that occurred in the mornings of June 24 and 29, 2016 on Accra-based Montie FM, described later as an expensive mistake has now metamorphosed into a fully-fledged controversy of gargantuan proportions. The play, popularly referred to as the “The Montie Trio Saga” starring Godwin Ako Gunn, Alistair Nelson and Salifu Maase (alias Mugabe) which was premiered in the studios of Montie Fm on the said date has now developed into thick script to be handed down to generations yet unborn.
Following the Supreme Court ruling on the matter brought before it by Abu Ramadan and Evans Nimako, the trio believed that by ordering the Electoral Commission to delete names of National Health Insurance card registrants from the electoral roll, the Supreme Court flawed in judgment. They consequently threatened during “Pampaso” a political talk show on Montie FM, to rape and murder justices of the Supreme Court.
Contempt Charges
The Supreme Court subsequently cited the trio, together with the directors of Network Broadcasting Limited (NBCL), operators of Montie FM; and ZeZe Media, owners of the station frequency for contempt of the apex court.
Remorse, Petition and Remission
Public condemnation of the Montie Trio was unanimous and subsequent apologies from the three, their legal counsels and sympathizers appeared to have had little effect as the Supreme Court on July 18 found them guilty of scandalizing the court; defying and lowering its authority; and bringing the authority of the court into disrepute; and thus convicted them. A week later the court handed them a four-month jail term with a GHȻ10, 000 fine or in default, spend an extra month in jail. Many who thought the three would be given non-custodial sentences were very much disappointed.
The double impact of a petition sent from prison to the President by the trio on August 2 and another christened ‘Free Montie Three’ launched and signed by many bigwigs of the National Democratic Congress including Nana Oye Lithur (the Minister Gender and Social Protection); Hon. Samuel Okudjeto Ablakwa (Deputy Minister of Education) and thousands of grassroots supporters to compel the President to exercise his discretionary powers under Article 72 of the constitution to release the three, yielded desired effect as President Mahama, obviously unfazed by heavy opposition to any such decision to grant pardon, remitted the sentence given the contemnors on Monday, August 22, 2016, effectively setting the stage for another dose of heated political debates that would engage the attention of many until another matter sets in.
Controversy
While members of the opposition argue the remission of sentence was in bad faith saying it is as a slap in the face of the Supreme Court, functionaries and sympathizers of the ruling NDC see otherwise. To the NDC sympathizers, President Mahama has demonstrated, once again that he is a listening and compassionate individual who deserves another stint at the presidency. Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah (Communications Minister) says President John Mahama still has an unfettered respect for all state institutions including the judiciary and that the President’s decision to remit the sentences of the Montie Trio, does not in any way undermine the role and authority of the judiciary.
Penance
Punishments differ in their degree of severity and may include sanctions such as reprimands, confinement, denial of something pleasant or desirable, deprivation of privileges or liberty, fines, incarcerations, ostracism, the infliction of pain, amputation and the death penalty. All of these are expected to serve as retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, and incapacitation (isolation, in order to prevent the wrongdoer from having contact with potential victims).
The four-month jail-term and GHc10,000 fine handed each contemnor by the Supreme Court was expected to fit the definition of punishment as an “authoritative imposition of an undesirable or unpleasant outcome upon a group or individual, in response to a particular action or behaviour that is deemed unacceptable or threatening to some norm.”
In “Misled” one of Celine Dion’s bestsellers, the line “it takes conviction, it takes a will to survive. I’m not somebody who commits the crime and leaves the scene” suggests to everyone bold enough to commit an offence to be man enough to suffer the consequences thereof. But while, the Montie Trio have demonstrated that they are not man-enough to bear pain (the very things they promised our revered justices), our President himself hasn’t been kind to the citizenry with his parochial show of mercy.
Media Tyranny
But at a time when many are worried about the growing media tyranny—intransigence and arrogance of some media practitioners and guests of radio talk shows, many expected the President to be more circumspect in handling the issue, allowing the contemnors to serve the full term of their conviction. This, many believe would lend credence to efforts of the judiciary to send a strong signal to those who may be under the illusion that the freedom and independence of the media expression guaranteed by Article 162 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana means that everyone who sleeps and wakes from a nightmare can toss a shirt over his torso and head to a radio station and cause fear and panic spewing venom with impunity before, during or after the December elections.
The National Media Commission which is mandated by Article 166 of the Constitution to, among other things, “take all appropriate measures to ensure the establishment and maintenance of the highest journalistic standards in the mass media, including the investigation, mediation and settlement of complaints made against or by the press or other mass media”; had set in motion programmes to instill discipline within the media landscape but no sooner had the NMC began implementation of the Content Standards Regulations 2015 (LI 2224), which require electronic media owners to seek content approval from the National Media Commission (NMC) before they publish anything, than its counterpart, the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) filed a lawsuit that effectively tied the NMCs hands from instilling discipline in the media.
Media tyranny is thus far establishing itself as social problem in Ghana; it is becoming a condition that most people in society view as being undesirable—the ravings and ranting; the character assassinations; the false accusations; allegations and subsequent withdrawals and apologies are becoming repugnant for social consumption.
The President’s Gesture
Is the President’s gesture borne out of goodwill or it is meant to score political points? Whether the gesture is another piece of political gimmick (aimed at diverting attention of the electorate from the real issues in the election or a scheme to score political points); or perhaps, a genuine exercise of magnanimity; what remains certain is that NDC and NPP will use the opportunity to take a swipe at each other for few more days while the nation waits for the next big story.
Whether the remission is justified or not, there’s got to be an end to radio rage. Remember Rwanda: how radio ravaged a nation!