DG’s ANNIVERSARY ADDRESS
TO GBC’s AUDIENCES, CLIENTS AND STAKEHOLDERS
FOR TUESDAY 26TH JULY, 2011 [ANNIVERSARY WEEK]

COLLEAGUES, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.

This year, July, 2011 the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation is 76 years old. We of GBC management wish to use this occasion to express our sincere gratitude to all our stakeholders, including our cherished viewers and listeners, our clients, sponsors, affiliates and partners.

First of all may I use this occasion to express GBC’s gratitude to all our past Directors-General of the The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation for their immense contributions to the growth of Corporation.

It is no secret that some of our past Directors General left the Corporation under some unfortunate circumstances which to a large extent generated untold strains in relationships, and in a few situations through acrimonious legal contests and hostile press scrutiny, among others.

May I also take this opportunity to express our appreciation to all past broadcasters, both alive and deceased, for their enormous contributions and untiring spirit and attitude to work to lift the legacy of GBC. God bless you all, our veteran past broadcasters.

In the same spirit, we will, forever, be indebted to our Governing Boards of Directors, past and present, who also devoted their time to drive GBC on the right path. God bless you all.

We wish to use this occasion to acknowledge the genuine concerns of different political dispensations which especially warm up whenever the political season draws near. All of these concerns I must say are entirely genuine and completely understandable. Frankly it would be naïve of us not to expect these challenges; especially, given the vibrancy of our budding and globally applauded democracy. It is in this light and spirit that we wish, on this occasion, to express our deepest respects to the different political institutions in our country and pledge our unending efforts, in consultation with the National Media Commission and in adherence to constitutional provisions to review and reform these challenges.

We may be mute on some of these issues; but please be assured that we are deeply abreast, concerned and sensitive about these and will continue to take every opportunity to iron them out as they present themselves. We acknowledge that covering the whole nation is credible and stands as a monumental plus to our services, but that will not in any way be substituted for quality content. The sky is the limit and we will strive to get better.

As the public may be aware, GBC has endured some interesting press attention throughout the year bordering around issues which we’ve not been too disposed to respond to.

I however want to state categorically that we maintain deep respect for the work of the press and we totally endorse and support their quest for the truth, [as rightfully endorsed by the constitution of Ghana], to help our citizenry make informed decisions in the affairs of our nation.

I admit our tardiness [and sometimes reluctance] to respond to some of the queries leveled against GBC by the respected Ghanaian press. I am cognizant of the frustration that sections of the press [including our own reporters] endure when they come up with questions regarding these issues that we are adamant to respond to.

I pray and hope this is not considered as indifference or negligence on GBC’s part, but rather viewed holistically considering the prevailing circumstances vis-à-vis the historical, cultural, political, and other dynamics of our country and sensitivities of our budding democracy; which require temperance and level-headedness to joggle.

We also want to acknowledge widespread public concern about the content and quality of GBC’s programming.

We acknowledge the duty and responsibility of GBC to provide quality education, information, entertainment and empowerment to our respected viewers and listeners. And along those lines we are not spared from the attendant challenges to satisfy all our varied demographics, political dispensations and deeply entrenched cultures; beyond our control not to mention the rapidly changing cultural dynamics with foreign influences, which we frankly applaud. Despite all that, [and the ever present challenges of limited resources], we wish to assure our viewers, listeners and stakeholders that there are frantic and practical efforts in progress to address those concerns about our programmes, and we assure you of lots of improvement in our programming.

Meanwhile GBC is happy to announce our on-going transmission of 2 new digital stations: GBC 24- an all news, current affairs and documentary channel; and GTV Sports plus; our all-sports channel available on GBC Digital Terrestrial Transmission channels, currently running in Accra and Kumasi. Shortly, we are adding another, the Religion and Culture channel. We are also working to upload news in the Ghanaian languages onto our website www.gbcghana.com via a 5 minute audio podcasts.

Our programmes on radio and TV will be undergoing some modifications to suit our times and the changing trends in the media dynamics.

To our sister media houses: radio and television, and to independent production houses, we invite you to join us to address the concerns of our populace. We nurture plans to collaborate with you through sharing of ideas with a view to satisfying our various audiences young & old, and to bring sanity into our media landscape.
To our staff nationwide let me convey to you the high confidence management’s has in you. We acknowledge the fact that despite our ever recurrent challenges, you are up and running day and night, rain or shine, to respond to national duties. Please keep up the heroic dedication, not only to GBC, but to the good people of this blessed nation, Ghana and to God Almighty.

To the good people of Ghana, we pledge GBC’s resolve to serve our beloved country through your national mouthpiece and to provide the much expected leadership in the broadcast industry in Ghana.
GBC will fly high the flag of Ghana.

Our new corporate rider, ‘GBC- the pulse of the nation’ [depicts the heartbeat and bloodline of the nation] and is applicable to all our networks nationwide. We are working tirelessly to continue to fine tune our relevance. We may not be perfect and we will not pretend we are. But one thing we know for sure is that your GBC will work for you. Your GBC will hear your voice; and your GBC will strive to satisfy you in conformity with its mandate.

But we can’t accomplish these without the support and advice of the true owners of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation-the people of Ghana.

God bless the nationwide staff of GBC.
God bless the Ghanaian media.
God bless Ghana.

THANK YOU.