Mahama’s clemency on radio stations PR stunt – Afenyo-Markin

Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has questioned the sincerity behind President John Dramani Mahama’s directive to restore the 62 radio stations which were shut down by the National Communications Authority (NCA), suggesting the move may be politically motivated.

Mr. Afenyo-Markin, who is also the Member of Parliament for Efutu, raised his concerns during proceedings on the floor of Parliament on Thursday, June 12, 2025.

““Mr Speaker, these are things that are done for the optics when the political system sees that there is a backlash,” he remarked, expressing scepticism about the motive behind the presidential intervention.

The Minority Leader further questioned why such a significant decision, thus reversing the NCA’s action, was not handled internally before being made public, especially considering that the regulator’s clampdown reportedly followed a directive from the Ministry of Communications.

“We take this with a pinch of salt, that the NCA, together with the Ministry of Communications has embarked on a specific path, and now Mr President, exercising his supervisory mandate, is telling them not to do it. Couldn’t this have been discussed in-house before the decision?” he asked.

While acknowledging the complexities of governance, Mr. Afenyo-Markin emphasized that the sequence of events cast doubt on the level of coordination and the true intent behind the directive.

President Mahama’s decision to restore the stations followed public outcry and concerns over media freedom after the NCA suspended several media outlets over persistent breaches of broadcasting regulations.