It has come to the attention of the management of nightwatch Press that certain Heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDA) including their public relations people are in the habit of intimidating news vendors who sell this news medium at such offices across the city.
News vendors who sell newspapers at offices all across town have informed the management of nightwatch that some MDA heads routinely ask why the vendors would position or place nightwatch in front of all the other papers, with the allegation that their placement of this medium in such a favourable position promotes the paper more than others.
“We are regularly asked why we put nightwatch ahead of the pile in the front of our displays. This happens at Parliament and the civil service like the police or army. The assumption is that we support nightwatch in their work of exposing public inadequacies and deficiencies,” said one of our sources.
According to sources, ranking members of the civil service and the ruling party government don’t read nightwatch in the open in fear of being labeled as an opposition supporter or sympathizer, even going as far as being labeled anti-government.
Speaking to the managing editor, proprietor, and publisher of nightwatch, he said the news medium is not anti-government.
“We cannot fight government. That is not even our focus. We support any sitting government that was clearly elected by the citizens in a free, fair, and credible electoral process. We cannot and do not fight government. Our focus is that we will not blindly support government as governments are made of fallible men and women who would like us to believe that they are indeed perfect. Nightwatch will not support the bad and ugly things of governance like the shooting of protesters, passing bad laws to oppress the people and stifle their voices, how the 2023 presidential elections panned out, etcetera. We support the good so seeing nightwatch as anti-government is not right,” said the media house owner.
Meanwhile, sources in government enclaves have said it is not uncommon for news media organizations to criticize the government, for people to even criticize God by disobeying Him and worshipping idols, adding: “So who is government for people not to criticize? Anyone that sets out to do good, whether in private or public life, must be prepared for criticism. Governments are not perfect organizations and therefore need people in the media and public to routinely remind the government of where they are failing. Any government that is serious about progress and change would listen and pay great attention to news media organizations they consider anti-regime. These are the people that tell leaders what they don’t want to hear, which is mostly good for them.”
On this vein, the management and staff of nightwatch, in response to the disclosure that certain ministry, department, and agency heads including their public relations people are intimidating vendors – for what they perceive as vendors promoting nightwatch in open support of the new medium’s stance on our governance narrative and the focus of their news reports, commentaries, opinion pieces, and editorials – and civil servants who read the paper in the open.
“Well, we are pleading with heads and public relations officers at the government ministries, departments, and agencies to stop intimidating news vendors who sell our paper and civil servants who would want to buy and read nightwatch openly without being labeled anti-regime and a member of the opposition in disguise. Let these people have the free will to buy this newspaper and comfortably sit in their offices and read the paper without fear of reprisals. We would like for people in government to judge for themselves and decide whether or not nightwatch is speaking the truth. As for this newspaper, we stand for the truth and nothing else. It is not our work to embarrass government. We are instead focused on exposing public inadequacies in government no matter who is in power. I would like to remind these people in the MDAs today not to forget that when the SLPP was in opposition this newspaper was accused of supporting Maada Bio. So now we are all of a sudden against Maada Bio and the SLPP? That is not true. We don’t make up the news; people in the public make the news we report on. Do the right thing, we publish right, but do anything against what you promised the people and we are there to remind you and the people,” stated the nightwatch publisher.
The media head continued that should the level of intimidation of civil servants who read and the vendors who sell nightwatch newspapers at government ministries, departments, and agencies continue, “We will have no choice but to publish the names of those intimidating news vendors seeking further clarification to clear the air,” the proprietor promised.
Meanwhile, the marketing manager at nightwatch has informed that since the advent of the Julius Maada Bio regime the news medium has been intimidated by being starved or denied government advertising placements because the paper is being viewed as standing against the plans and actions of the SLPP led government.
“We are already in a bad position with people in government who do advertising placements for the government. They regularly starve us by not advertising in our paper. We have been informed by such people that the heads of MDAs and their public relations people consider night watch to be against the system and that they follow orders from above not to share advertising revenue set apart for advert placements by the government with us. But we believe that we are on the side of righteousness and that no amount of intimidation will stop us from publishing in the interest of the people and state. Posterity will not judge this regime well with regards their attitude towards this news medium,” the night watch marketing manager assured.