Mpraeso Member of Parliament, Davis Ansah Opoku (OPK), has cautioned the Minister for Communications, Samuel Nartey George, against undermining the independence of the National Communications Authority (NCA) through a selective frequency audit.
Speaking in Parliament, OPK reminded members that the NCA is an independent regulatory body established under Section 9 of the Electronic Communications Act 2008 (Act 775), which states:
“Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the Authority shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority in performing its functions.”
He emphasized that the Minister has no legal authority to instruct the NCA to audit or revoke frequency authorizations.
Any such review, he insisted, must be initiated by the NCA itself and follow due process rather than ministerial influence.
Beyond the issue of independence, OPK questioned the rationale behind the Minister’s directive to audit only frequency authorizations granted in the past 60 days.
He argued that if the goal was transparency and regulatory compliance, the audit should cover all frequency allocations, rather than focusing on a narrow timeframe that could be politically motivated.
“Radio is the heartbeat of our democracy. It serves as a valve for people to air their views on issues that concern them—a practice that has sustained our democracy,” OPK stated.
He warned that attempts to selectively audit or revoke frequency authorizations could be perceived as efforts to suppress press freedom and control media narratives.
He urged the Minister to uphold the NCA’s independence and allow the regulatory body to function without political interference.
Reaffirming the critical role of radio in Ghana’s democracy, OPK stressed that media freedom must be protected at all costs.
He called on Parliament to ensure that regulatory institutions operate transparently and fairly, guaranteeing that all Ghanaians have unrestricted access to independent media voices.
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