According to them, they do not understand why the Magistrate, Her Worship Arit Nsemoh decided to prevent them from covering the case.
According to them, that was not the first time a similar incident had happened at the Magistrate court in Accra.
They said during the recent SSNIT versus Ibrahim Mahama case, another Magistrate, prevented journalists from taking notes during the proceedings. They were only allowed to listen to the proceedings and were not allowed to write in their notepads in the courtroom, on the orders of the Magistrate.
Journalists covering the trial of the two suspected murderers of the Member of Parliament for Abuakwa North, J.B. Danquah-Adu were on Thursday morning ejected from the courtroom at the Magistrate Court in Accra.
The presiding judge, Her Worship Arit Nsemoh directed Police officers stationed inside the courtroom to prevent all journalists from entering.
The Police also evicted journalists who were already seated in the courtroom after the two suspects, Daniel Asiedu and Vincent Bossu, were ushered in.
Her Worship Arit Nsemoh gave no reason for her decision.
Graphic Online’s Emmanuel Ebo Hawkson who was in court reported the judge also ordered the police to prevent any journalist from entering the court.
The suspects were in court Thursday after the Attorney-General (A-G) had initially filed a nolle prosequi to discontinue the prosecution on May 30.
They were however re-arrested by heavily armed policemen immediately after that court sitting.
The case re-started at the Magistrate Court presided over by Her Worship Efua Sackey, who was currently on leave and hence Her Worship Arit Nsemoh took over.
Mr Wilberforce Asare, Dean of the Judicial Press Corp told Accra based radio station, Class FM that they were preparing the petition and hopefully, it would be presented to the President of the Association of Judges and Magistrates on Friday.
He said the move was to ensure that when journalists return to the court on June 29, when the case would be recalled, they would not be prevented from covering the case.
Speaking to Accra based Class FM in his capacity as President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Affail Monney said he has spoken to Her Worship Arit Nsemoh about the incident.
According to him, the judge explained that she sacked the journalists from the court because they entered the courtroom with cameras, which was not allowed.
“Our decision to talk to her was predicated on the principle that every story has two sides. And the side she gives was that she didn’t know that journalists were entering the courtroom with cameras and it was in violation with the rules governing court proceedings.”
“So she asked the cameraman to leave the courtroom with the camera, and I asked her if the order for the journalists to leave the courtroom also affected other journalists, especially those from the print, she said no, she couldn’t even identify the journalists but all that she realise was that some cameramen were at the gate and pointing at her, and she felt it was unethical and unlawful and she exercised her powers and asked the police to ask them to vacate the premises.”
“She is not against journalists entering her courtroom to do whatever they are supposed to do…”.
Mr Monney said the GJA will continue to investigate and find out the exact circumstances which surround the issue.
Asked if the police used their discretion to ask journalists who were already seated in the courtroom to also move out, Mr Monney said according to the judge, “she was taken aback when she saw the cameraman already at the gate already filming, so she asked that the cameraman should leave but she did not ask other journalists to leave the courtroom, because she felt journalists have the right to report,” Mr Monney said.
