Ace broadcast journalist, Oheneyere Dr Gifty Anti, revealed that her internship at the Ghanaian Times was a pivotal period in her career, thanks to the mentorship of renowned media consultant and journalist, Lys Hayfron Asare.
Speaking with Irene Adubea Aning on Joy Learning TV’s entrepreneurship programme, “The Career Trail,” Dr Anti shared how this challenging experience helped shape her into the journalist she is today.
“At Ghanaian Times, I met a woman who has now become my professional godmother, Mrs Lys Hayfron Asare, who took me under her wings. Lord, was she tough on me! I thought this woman hated me with a passion. She was tough! Nothing I did pleased her. I’d go on assignment, she’d read it and just put it aside and say, ‘Go and write again, go and write a proper story,’” Dr Anti recalled.
Her breakthrough in journalism occurred when she was sent out to find a story. “I met a little girl at Circle who was selling water, not sachet water, but the one they tie in a rubber. I started talking to her because I deeply resonated with her situation.
“From our conversations, I discovered that she had been brought to Accra by her aunt who promised to enroll her in school but failed to do so. I wrote the story and presented it to Mrs. Lys Hayfron Asare, who made some corrections and added a few things to it, and guess what? This story made the front page,” she proudly shared.
Dr Anti also reminisced about her late father, who was her biggest supporter. She recalled how thrilled he was with her accomplishments, which fueled her relentless pursuit of journalism.
“People can see potential in you,” she said, “but sometimes, your circumstances can blind you. When I couldn’t gain admission to KNUST, I got sick from brokenness; because I’d come home, and all my friends had gone to school, and I was the only one left behind.
” One morning, my dad came to visit, and I said to him that when I grew up, I would marry a doctor, so I will become prominent. He just looked at me, teary-eyed, and said, ‘Naana, you will be great. You wouldn’t have to marry a rich man to be great, but you, you will be great,” she concluded.
Although she was unable to foresee that great future at the time, she praised her late father for being able to see beyond her present circumstances.
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