Yaa Konamah, a media personality and employee of Despite Media, has slammed a colleague journalist at Multimedia, Omanhene Kwabena Asante, for criticizing her media firm following a recent attack.
She stated that Omanhene Kwabena Asante’s reporting of the events that led to the thug invasion of UTV was false and that she should have listened to the station’s side of the story before commenting on the matter.
Omanhene Kwabena Asante was chastised by the media personality for criticizing UTV for a lack of appropriate security procedures, which allowed the thugs to gain entry to the studio and disrupt the United Showbiz show.
“Bro Kwabena [Omanhene Asante], who did you take your facts from? Facts mean you’ve listened to our side of the story but what you told the public is not true so who gave you that fact? What you said is not a fact.
“As Ada radio incident happened, we did the news. Wherever it happens, we work on it, so, it’s not like we have taken the matter seriously because it happened to us. If you’re saying it does not concern you because it happened to us, one day, it will concern you,” she said during the Adekye Nsroma morning show on UTV.
Yaa Konamah also mentioned how government officials have been attacking the media in recent years, and asked Asante to be concerned as someone in the journalistic industry.
“In 2012, the NDC government raised concerns with the Ekosii Sen program on Asempa FM where some NPP boys invaded the studios and it went off air for a while. After the program came back on air, Bobbie was not hosting it. So, would you say the security at Multimedia at the time wasn’t tight or was it right?
“As we are practicing journalism, does anyone determine who should appear on a show? Does the media ethics give people the right to be part of the show by force?
“We should deal with this issue. The last time it happened to Radio Ada, Dagbon FM, and now UTV. This year alone we’ve had five cases of attacks on media stations.”
Yaa Konamah’s rage comes after Omanhene Kwabena Asante chastised some members of the public for criticizing the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for writing to the management of United Television (UTV) to request reforms in the content of the United Showbiz program, aimed at ensuring fairness in panelist submissions.
He stated that there was nothing improper with the letter issued to UTV management to change the UnitedShowbiz program since the party has the right to do so if it believes it necessary as long as it does not violate any restrictions.
The media personality chastised Kwame A Plus for ripping the NPP letter to the station management, calling his conduct unworthy of a person of his quality in both the media and the political realm.
“If the NPP writes a letter to the UTV to reform the content of the show because they believe there is a digression from the primary motive, is it a crime or taboo?
“I’m learning that a panel member on that show picked the NPP letter that was written to UTV and tore it apart on live TV. And as we speak from my checks there is no apology from the management of UTV to the NPP,” he said.
Omanhene Kwabena Asante has called on UTV management to apologize for A Plus’ unethical acts in ripping the letter by the NPP on Live TV, saying it does not bode well for the media profession.
“Number two, I can’t determine the content of a show just that it should be within the remits of the law. The last time I checked the excerpts of the program on their social media page, it was basically unprintable words.
“So I think that the management of UTV should explain the matters further. Again, UTV should come and explain why a panel member will tear a political party’s letter which was not meant for him on Live TV,” he said in an interview with Asempa FM.
On the contrary, Yaa Konamah stated that the letter was never received by UTV management and was instead distributed by the NPP. She added that A Plus printed a copy of the letter after reading it online, therefore it would be incorrect to infer that UTV management gave the letter over to A Plus to rip into pieces.
Yaa Konamah expresses her outrage over NPP thugs invading UTV studio#UTVNews pic.twitter.com/3gq2WlrlBV
— UTV Ghana (@utvghana) October 11, 2023
