Journalism is a beacon of truth and accountability, a profession upheld by well trained and responsible citizens dedicated to serving the public interest.
However in Ghana this noble calling faces a growing threat from impostors who exploit a lack of robust supervision and financial support for essential professional development workshops.
These individuals, some with questionable backgrounds masquerade as journalists with the ultimate aim at duping innocent people and engage in unethical practices like blackmail.
Unburdened by training or knowledge of the critical rules and ethics of the profession, these “quakes” often offend and commit crimes, frequently disappearing without a trace, leaving a trail of unpunished deceit.
One of such criminals has now been exposed:
Eric Nana Arko who also goes by the name “Buumuru” is posing as the Ashanti Regional Editor of an Accra based privately owned radio station, Radio Gold,a station renowned for its dedication and commitment to reporting nothing but the truth.
Arko’s cunning attempt to use the name of an innocent journalist to extort money from an Engineer (name withheld for security reasons) in Techiman, Bono Ahafo region has backfired spectacularly.
According to the genuine journalist, whose identity is also being withheld, Eric Nana Arko recently paid him a visit at his residence.
During their discussions they touched upon alleged dirty financial deals that reportedly took place at the National Services Secretariat (NSS), linking the Chief Executive Officer Osei Assibey,
as a principal figure in the purported scandal.
The conversation also delved into allegations of Osei Assibey’s conduct during his tenure at the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly as the City Mayor..
A week later the journalist was taken aback when an Engineer friend in Techiman called, informing him of a serious allegations Eric Nana Arko had brought forward, threatening to publish a damaging story against the Engineer.
Shocked by these fabricated claims, the journalist immediately called for a conference call and brought Nana Arko into the conversation to prove the authenticity of his menacing message to the Engineer.
It was during this conference call that Arko’s deception unraveled.
The Engineer quoted Eric Arko as saying:
“Engineer when I saw that damaging story against you I became so much annoyed and quickly snatched and destroyed the story.”
However when confronted directly on the call, Arko couldn’t even mention a single allegation he claimed to have “picked” from the journalist to use against the Engineer.
Realizing that he had been caught, he attempted to dismiss the issue as a joke but the gravity of his offence was clear.
Eric Arko has since rendered televised apologies to the journalist which have not been accepted.
The journalist is now lodging a formal complaint with the Ashanti regional branch of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), amidst parallel police action to compel Arko to confess his crimes.
Further intensive investigations have also brought to light a disturbing pattern of behaviour.
It was discovered that Eric Arko was also operating as an informant for a known Kumasi self styled pastor, Machaiah Akwasi Addai who also tags himself as the President of the Association of the 7th Day Pentecostal Assemblies at Kumasi Adiebeba.
This same Eric Arko had previously visited Pastor Akwasi Addai’s house to fabricate stories against the legitimate journalist for an “unyielding butter and bread mission” – effectively attempting to monetize false narratives.
This visit to the pastor’s house followed an earlier incident where the journalist had threatened to arrest Akwasi Addai, leading the pastor to the Central Police Station to help resolve an issue.
Meanwhile enquiries made at the Radio Gold confirmed that the station has not employed Eric Arko; they have unequivocally disowned him as a worker.
It has further been discovered that Arko is merely a dropped out apprentice mason who was once employed by his journalist friend as an errand boy.
Eric Arko unexpectedly left his friend’s employment and began posing as a journalist.
He has since opportunistically using the names of reputable media houses to blackmail people for money.
This case serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for stricter oversight, vigorous training and uncompromising enforcement of ethical standards within Ghana’s media landscape to protect both the integrity of Journalism and the public from such unscrupulous individuals..
Stay tuned for further development on this shady scandal
