The biggest opposition political party in Ghana, the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has announced withdrawal from all Media General platforms with immediate effect. The party cites what it describes as continued unfair coverage and editorial bias in Media General’s political coverage as the reason for its withdrawal.
Media General is one of the leading media companies in Ghana. Its media platforms include TV3, 3FM (online news portal), Onua FM and Onua TV, — all of which the NPP has decided to boycott.
In a statement issued by the party’s Director of Communications, Richard Ahiagbah, the NPP outlined a series of grievances against the media organisation, accusing it of unbalanced reporting, partisan hosting practices, and consistent hostile commentary directed at the party’s leading members.
The party claims that efforts to engage Media General since 2023 over concerns of partiality have not yielded much results. Among the specific issues raised were the composition of discussion panels that, according to the NPP, frequently favour the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), thereby marginalising their own representatives. The party also pointed to instances of disruptive hosting and failure to manage inflammatory comments on air.
As part of the directive, all party communicators and officials have been instructed to cease appearing on Media General platforms until further notice. The NPP also indicated that the decision taken against the media group does not compromise its commitment to democratic discourse or its role in promoting good governance.
The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) urges the NPP and Media General to settle the issue amicably to ensure that the audiences of both parties are not denied information at any point.