Justice Prof Date-Bah lauds call-in programmes

27/02/08

Story: Musah Yahaya Jafaru
A JUDGE of the Supreme Court of Ghana, Justice Prof. Samuel K. Date-Bah, has lauded the concept of call-in programmes on radio stations and said they had deepened democratic governance in the country.
He said the call-in programmes allowed citizens to freely express their views on national issues and were able to influence government decisions.
According to him, the vibrancy of the media through the call-in programmes was an evidence of freedom of expression in the country.
Justice Prof. Date-Bah was delivering a lecture on: “Law, Liberty, Development and Social Justice” at the 41st J. B. Danquah Memorial Lecture in Accra on Tuesday.
The Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences (GAAS) instituted the lecture in 1968 in memory of Dr Danquah, a foundation member of the academy who died in prison in February 1965 fighting for freedom.
Described as the doyen of Gold Coast politics, Dr Danquah was a lawyer, scholar, journalist, philosopher, dramatist, novelist and statesman.
The series of three lectures are delivered by either a fellow of the GAAS or a distinguished non-fellow of the GAAS, and the areas considered include law, science and technology, environment, philosophy, human rights, medicine, good governance and the economy.
Justice Prof. Date-Bah said the media was the vital means of participating in the political discourse, and putting the government on check.
He noted that freedom of speech was pronounced in the country, saying that “freedom of speech is live and well in this country”.
Justice Prof. Date-Bah stressed the need for people to be given the opportunity to articulate their views in any legal decision.
That, he said, “lives the road to enhancing personal liberty” and guaranteed the rights of citizens.
He, however, reminded the people that freedom of speech and expression had limitations, such as national security and defaming the character of people, which must be observed.
On the right to assembly, Justice Prof. Date-Bah said per the country’s constitution everyone had the right to associate with any organisation that he or she deemed fit.
He stressed that every democratic state was in favour of peaceful assembly and indicated that balance was the key consideration.
Justice Prof. Date-Bah referred to several cases bordering on the liberty of individuals and said the judgements were illustrative of the vibrancy of constitutionalism in the country.
He said the 1992 Constitution recognised that the sovereignty of the nation resided in the people.
Justice Prof. Date-Bah, therefore, stressed the need for all relevant institutions to support the principle of protecting the liberty of individuals.