Sanitising the Airwaves.

Byline: Ayuureyisiya Kapini Atafori

The expectations that a Broadcasting Law will soon come to rescue Ghana from the use of indecent and intemperate language in the electronic media are dashed as the Broadcasting Bill is very much likely not to see the light of day before the presidential and parliamentary elections are held.

Even if the Attorney-General's (A-G) Department completes the drafting of the Bill on time, with many bills pending and the electioneering season near, Members of Parliament (MPs) have little time to do justice to the Bill that will regulate the content of radio and television broadcasts of media houses. Since the liberalisation of the airwaves in 1995, the country has not put in place a Broadcasting Act and the concomitant regulations to ensure that sanity exists in the broadcasting industry.

Our sources say the Bill is at the A-G's Department for crafting and drafting after a consultant had submitted his report to the Ministry of Information which further submitted the draft Bill to Cabinet. With Government interference, however, the making of the Bill has started on a dubious note.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Government recruited the sole consultant …