The Chairperson of the National Media Commission (NMC), Yaw Boadu Ayeboafo, has called on the media to refrain from usurping the responsibilities of the Electoral Commission (EC) in declaring presidential election results.

He stressed that the declaration of results is the exclusive responsibility of the EC’s Chairperson and urged journalists not to take on this role.

While reporters are permitted to report on results from various polling stations after the polls close, Ayeboafo emphasised that the media should allow the EC, as mandated by the Constitution, to officially declare the final presidential results.

“We want to affirm that, it is only the Electoral Commission that can declare results. The good thing that we have is that, at the constituency level, it will be declared at the constituency. It is only in the presidential election that there is only one returning officer and that is the chairperson of the EC.

“When it happens like that and there is a delay, it is better that we wait rather than rush and publish what we will find out so as not to be validated, and put everybody in danger. I mean you saw what happened in 2020 until the political parties started their press conferences, claiming that we have won or this one has won, there was peace in this country.

“But the moment that this person said I have won and vice versa tension arose and that is why some of the things that happened shouldn’t have happened. We in the media have an obligation when political tension rises so high.

“We must bring it down by the way we approach issues, by the language that we use and by the individuals that we invite to speak on our platforms.”

Mr Ayeboafo made these remarks during a Media Forum of Election 2024 organized by the Ashanti Regional Media Advisory Committee of the National Media Commission in Kumasi, on November 5.

The forum brought together media practitioners to sensitize them on how to combat misinformation, fake news, and hate speech ahead of the December polls.

Mr Ayeboafo also called on journalists to prioritize the verification of information before disseminating it to audiences.