TINA S. MEHNPAINE
Africa-Press – Liberia. The Independent Media Commission (IMC) of Sierra Leone has accredited a group of prominent female journalists from Liberia to cover the presidential elections. The accreditations were given out under the auspices of the Female Journalists Association of Liberia (FeJAL) during a visit to the Commission’s office at 54 Siaka Stevens Street in Freetown.
Just four days ahead of the Sierra Leone presidential elections, the government has stepped up the process of granting accreditation to journalists and media institutions to ensure that citizens have access to credible and reliable information.
According to Khalil Kallon, the executive secretary of the commission, the commission must grant press credentials.
“The Independent Media Commission is the body that is being charged to giving the media accreditations,” he said.
Sierra Leoneans will go to the polls to elect a new president on Saturday, June 24, 2023. The media would be essential in spreading reliable and factual information during this, the country’s fifth election after its 10-year civil war.
The IMC, which is independent of the government, supervises and controls activities such as media institution registrations and accreditations and has intensified accreditation of media houses.
“We are responsible for giving all media institutions accreditation,” Kallon said.
In Freetown, two well-known contenders are vying for the presidency of this nation of 8.4 million people. President Julius Maada Bio, the incumbent, has pledged to focus on expanding access to public education and increasing agricultural productivity if re-elected, according to Al Jazeera reports.
Samura Kamara, who finished second in the previous presidential election in 2018, is the other contender for the position of leader of the country.
Freedom of expression was one of the primary causes of the Freetown civil war, according to the IMC secretary, which is why the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) suggested the formation of the IMC to control the media.
“So it was on that basis that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended the establishment of an independent commission that will regulate the affairs of media institutions.”
FeJAL, in partnership with Internews, is implementing a two year media activity for female newsroom leaders to build their leadership capacity.
Titled ‘Female Newsroom Leaders’, the two-year media activity will enable female journalists to take on leadership roles and increase their representation.
It will also help women’s professional growth, and make sure that more stories are generated by, for, and about women.
Twelve women journalists will stay in Freetown for one week to cover the elections on Saturday.
According to Siatta Scott Johnson, FeJAL’s president, one of the excuses society gives for why women journalists are not excelling is that they don’t have the capacity. “They are not equipped enough, so they just remain as reporters. So we thought to move away from these excuses to build their capacities by training them.”
“We want to see how the media operate in Sierra Leone, and apply it to ours. It is a learning experience for us.”
Source: Liberian Observer
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