Reigning P.V. Ansah 2023 Journalist of the Year, Edward Adeti, has urged his colleagues not to let the fear of death deter them from speaking the truth for the public good.
The investigative journalist, who has worked with several reputable media houses in Ghana and now writes for Media without Borders, is well-known for a series of threats and persecutions he has faced in connection with his work.
He is a speaker at the ongoing 20th edition of the African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC) in Johannesburg, South Africa.
“Journalists should not be afraid of pain, hunger, rejection, and death. The truth is that whether you speak the truth or not, you will still go.
It is better to speak the truth and go well. Leonardo da Vinci said, ‘As a day well spent gives a joyful sleep, so does a life well spent give a joyful death.’
“As journalists, we should be as true to ourselves as possible so that we finish our mission on earth, and we should be smiling when we are about to die,” he said during a session at the conference.
He made a presentation during the session on the recent investigative story that earned him Ghana’s topmost journalism award, “Stealing from the Sick.”
The story reveals how Ghana lost millions of cedis in medicines stolen on a massive scale for about two years from the Upper East Regional Hospital.
The thefts caused rampant shortages of drugs at the public hospital, resulting in the loss of lives and the deterioration of conditions for some patients.
The investigation led to the arrests and ongoing criminal trials of some members of the syndicate responsible for the thefts.
Africa’s foremost investigative journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, addressed the conference afterward in the same session.
He stressed the need for investigative journalists to obtain hardcore evidence when they are engaged in a mission to expose wrongdoing.
He said having such evidence is the finest way to effectively substantiate claims that a crime has been committed, particularly when the need arises in a court of law.
“When I go undercover, I take evidence that I know will lead to a conviction when I stand in court. Those are the key things I look at when I go undercover.
