Journalists feel threatened under Nana Addo - Mahama

According to him, the government has failed to protect the rights and lives of journalists in the country.

He said "Nana Akufo-Addo signed the criminal libel law so that journalists could no longer be penalized for their write-ups and yet under him press freedom is deteriorating. The last index that was published, Ghana has slipped several steps behind in terms of press freedom.

"At first, you go out and people tell you they admire the media independence of your country, but today we don’t feel the same. Everybody now feels there is a certain emasculation of the media space."

His comments come at the back of the threats on investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni who has been flown outside Ghana after he produced a documentary titled 'militia in the heart of the nation,' which revealed the presence of pro-government militia force working at the former seat of government, Christiansborg Castle and also the death of investigative journalist with Anas Aremeyaw Anas' TigerEye PI team, Ahmed Hussein Suale.

John Mahama Pulse Ghana

He described as shameful the practice where governments take on journalists merely because their [NPP] administration has been criticized.

"Look at the threat to journalists. Mannaseh Azure was very active in our time and made several exposés but nobody went after him. Mannaseh never said he felt threatened under my administration. Even if our media is not perfect, we must encourage it to improve and not to harass anybody. Ahmed Suale has lost his life and it has gone international. I travel outside and people ask me what is happening in Ghana.

"Why should journalists feel threatened because they criticize government. I came into office and faced some of the worse criticisms that any President has ever faced in this country. It is good for our democracy if they criticize us. If their stories are not true, you respond if you can. But under this President, I think the media is under attack," the NDC flagbearer said on Accra-based Citi FM.