By Dennis Peprah, GNA
Sunyani, (Bono), May 18, GNA – The Very Reverend Dr Solomon Bruce, the Superintendent of the Sunyani Wesley Methodist Cathedral has implored Ghanaians not to regard the media as an enemy, but key partners of development.
Instead, he urged the public to give journalists and media practitioners in general the required freedom to operate without obstructing their work.
He emphasised that the media remain key partners in accelerating national development, saying that press freedom remained the cornerstone of consolidating the gains of the nation’s fledgling democracy.
“The media must be allowed to guarantee citizens’ access to information, strengthened transparency and accountability and expose wrongdoings in society”, Rev Dr Bruce said.
He was speaking at the Bono Regional Celebration of the 2026 World Press Freedom Day in Sunyani on the theme: “Shaping the future at peace: How the youth and the media are building peaceful cities”, organised by the Bono Regional Chapter of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA).
Very Rev Dr Bruce who presided over the event, emphasised that without a free, ethical and fearless media, accountability suffered and the public denied the deserved voices and information.
He urged the media to also uphold high ethical values, strive for accuracy by always endeavouring to cross check their facts well, urging Journalists to dig deeper to verify facts, amid the rise in information disorder, AI-generated content, and political misinformation.
Very Rev Bruce reminded the media that upholding accuracy remained an integral in protecting the public’s right to information and strengthening democracy.
“You must always put a premium on accuracy because rushing to the press often leads to the dissemination of false information”, he advised.
Very Rev Bruce urged the media to remain steadfast in promoting truth, and advancing professionalism and public accountability, despite the emerging threats and pressures.
Earlier in a welcoming address, Mrs Regina Benneh Siaw, the Bono Regional Chairperson of the GJA noted that: “National peace is being built or broken daily by the stories journalists choose to tell”.
She said that: “Peace is shaped daily by the stories we choose to tell and the ones we choose to ignore”, and asked the media to report fairly, particularly on chieftaincy disputes that threatened the prevailing peace of the Bono Region.
Mrs Siaw said the celebration of the 2026 World Press Freedom Day was a direct call to action for the media to hold duty bearers accountable without fear or favour.
GNA
Kenneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Dennis Peprah
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