GJA is now Ghana Jokers Association – Manasseh Azure

Manasseh Azure addresses current state of GJA

GJA has lost its relevance, Manasseh

Manasseh Azure Awuni has expressed great disappointment in the umbrella body of journalists in the country, describing the Ghana Journalists Association as one that has lost its sense of purpose.

By that, the multiple award-winning investigative and anti-corruption journalist said that the sorry state of the current GJA makes it appear more like an association for jokers, rather than what it should be.

Speaking at a seminar in Accra themed, ‘The GJA Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – Repositioning for the Next Phase’, he listed out some of the reasons he has come to such a conclusion, adding that the association has downgraded itself.

“The GJA of today has lost a sense of direction. The GJA of today has lost its sense of purpose. The GJA of today has even lost its sense of shame because the extent to which they’ll stoop so low. The last most degrading thing I saw was the GJA letterhead being used to seek support to feed; an NGO was doing its project but it was the GJA’s letterhead that was being used to seek support from other government agencies to go and feed during the Christmas or whatever and I don’t think this is what the GJA should do,” he said.

Manasseh Azure Awuni, who won Ghana Journalist of the Year award in 2011, further said that it is disturbing enough that the GJA of today does not speak for the interest of the very people for which it exists, making a joke of itself.

“The GJA as it is, has lost its relevance. The GJA of today, in my opinion, exists to give a few people the political capital to use for whatever personal agenda they want to have. The GJA of today does not stand for the interest of journalists and the GJA as we have it today can be best described as the Ghana Jokers Association and not Ghana Journalists Association,” he said.

The event also had other speakers like Dr. Frankie Asare-Donkoh, Gayheart Mensah, Kwesi Pratt Jnr, Ransford Tetteh, Shamima Muslim, and Odartey Lamptey.