Announcing the awardees, Dr Doris Yaa, Dartey, the Chairperson of the Awards Committee, said the key guiding principles for the selection were integrity, confidentiality and efficiency.    She said although an award must be competitive, many entries received demonstrated poor quality of work and urged prospective entrants to respect the Award scheme.

She said the Award Committee observed that some entries were not well labelled or identified with the name of reporter and media house.  Dr Dartey called on the GJA to support media houses to train reporters on the layout of stories, while urging editors and producers to provide good supervision of their staff.

The awardees from the Ghana News Agency are Kafui Kanyi and Goodwill Arthur-Mensah, who qualified for Individual Award and the Special Award respectively.   The GNA is also receiving an institutional award. Other Awardees from the Daily Graphic, Graphic online and Graphic Business are; Seth J. Bokpe, and Zadok Kwame Gyasi Samuel Kyei-Boateng and Dotse Koblah Aklorbortu respectively.

Others are Portia Gabor, Peter Quao Adator from TV3, John Vigah from the Ghanaian Times, Benedict Owusu from Joy Fm, and Dominic Hlordzi of Ghana Broadcasting Corporation.  Seth Kwame Boateng of Joy TV, Samuel Innocent Appiah of the Informer, David Andoh of Myjoyonline, Kwame Anum of TV Africa, Dominic Andoh of Business and Financial Times, and Latif Iddrisu of Joy News are also winners.

Additionally, Umaru Sanda of Citi Fm, Hadiza Nuhu-Billa Quansah of the Mirror Newspaper, Jamila Akweley Okerchiri of the Daily Guide, Kojo Mensah Abrompa of TV Africa, and Alice Aryeetey as well as Ridwan Karim Dini Osman of GH One TV and Kwame Sefa Kayi of Peace FM are also winners.

Other awards would be presented to New Day of TV3, Citi FM’s Bernard Avle and the Team, Good Evening Ghana of Metro TV, Peace FM’s Nana Yaa Konadu and GBC’s Adult Education (Akan, Ga, Ewe, Dagbani, Hausa, and Nzema).

Kenneth Ashigbey, Affail Monney, Carol Annang, Ransford Tetteh, Yaa Oforiwah Asare-Peasah, Gloria Ahiadzi, Kofi Laweh, Nii Laryea Sowah, Josephine Nkrumah and Ace Ankomah would be recognised for key roles played in the fight against corruption as members of ‘Media Coalition Against Galamsey’.

Individual Reporters to be awarded for the fight against galamsey are Kojo Agyemang of Citi FM, Edem Srem, a Freelance Journalist, Latif Iddrisu of Joy News, Kwabena Adu-Gyamfi of TV3, and Clara Mlano of GTV.

The rest are Julius Yao Petetsi of the Ghanaian Times, Stephen Kweku Ofosu of Oman FM, Joyce Gyekye of GBC, Obrempong Yaw Ampofo of Citi FM, and Seth J. Bokpe of Daily Graphic.   Media houses to be awarded are; Citi FM, Rite FM, Business and Financial Times, GNA, UTV and GTV.

 The 22nd GJA awards ceremony is scheduled for December 20, at the Banquet Hall, State House, in Accra.