President intervenes in radio stations closure: Ministry gives 30-day ultimatum
Sixty-two frequency modulation (FM) radio stations that were shut down by the National Communications Authority (NCA) over regulatory violations have now been granted a 30-day grace period to rectify their breaches or risk having their broadcasting rights formally revoked.
Hours after being shut down yesterday morning, President John Dramani Mahama intervened, ordering the immediate restoration of the affected stations’ broadcast authorisation.
“The President believes that regulatory compliance must take into account the need to uphold and enhance media freedoms, and that shutting down radio stations while awaiting regularisation could limit the space for expressing such freedoms,” a statement signed by the Spokesperson to the President, Felix Kwakye Ofosu said.
The President then directed the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations to work with the NCA on a reasonable timeline for the stations to regularise their operations.
Shutdown
Yesterday, the NCA directed the affected stations to suspend operations for breaching provisions of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775) and its regulations.
The stations included Asaase Radio, Happy FM and Wontumi FM.
The NCA spelt out the violations to include operating with expired licences, failing to set up within the mandated two-year timeframe after authorisation, and non-payment of applicable fees.
The shutdown followed a directive from the Minister of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, to the NCA to enforce broadcasting laws after a forensic audit exposed widespread non-compliance across the sector.
Rationale
In an urgent statement to Parliament, Mr George provided a detailed breakdown of the infractions, categorising the affected stations into four groups: those operating with expired authorisations; those who failed to establish operations within the mandated timeframe; those issued provisional authorisations but yet to settle the applicable fees; and those who paid fees but had not completed final regulatory requirements.
“Mr Speaker, spectrum is a finite and highly valuable national resource. It is a public good held in trust for the people of Ghana,” the Minister said, stressing the importance of upholding the law while ensuring fair access to the airwaves.
Mr george explained that the audit, initiated shortly after he assumed office in February 2025, was part of the government’s “Operation Recover All Loots” initiative, aimed at identifying spectrum hoarding, underutilised frequencies and unauthorised operations.
“Dear honourable colleagues, we passed the laws and have a high bar set for ourselves as honourable members of this August House. We need to lead the way with exemplary conduct.
As a Ministry and regulator, we are status agnostic and will be fair to everyone irrespective of ethnic, religious, political or social affiliation,” the Ningo-Prampram lawmaker said.
Waives fines
Mr George added that as a result of President Mahama’s directive, the ministry and the NCA had agreed to waive all fines that would ordinarily have applied to the defaulting entities.
“This is not the same as the arbitrary revocations and hefty fines imposed under the previous administration. Our fight is not against free speech; it is against lawlessness, asset misappropriation and regulatory defiance,” he said. “
The minister called on all affected stations to take advantage of the clemency and comply within the 30-day window, highlighting that earlier this year, six stations that were shut down had been reinstated after fulfilling their regulatory obligations.
“Our goal is not punishment, but accountability, order and the responsible stewardship of a public critical resource,” Mr George added.
Reactions
The Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, critiqued the government’s pardon, arguing that the NCA’s regulatory actions — particularly the shutdown of the radio stations — already contravened the 1992 Constitution, especially Article 162, which guaranteed media freedom.
He cited multiple clauses to emphasise that no law or regulation should require licensing as a prerequisite to operate a media outlet. Mr Afenyo-Markin referenced past remarks made by Mr George when he was an opposition MP, in which the Communication Minister himself had condemned similar regulatory crackdown as unconstitutional.
The Minority Leader expressed concern that the government’s apparent clemency was reactionary, suggesting it was prompted by public backlash rather than principle.
He concluded by urging the Ministry and NCA to be guided by Article 296, warning that regulations must not override constitutional protections.
Defence
The Majority Leader, Mahama Ayariga, however, defended the minister’s actions and dismissed accusations of political inconsistency.
For example, he read from official letters sent by the NCA to stations like Wontumi Radio (one of the affected stations) in 2022 and 2023, which highlighted violations, including unauthorised transmission locations, lack of fire and environmental permits and unpaid licence fees.
Mr Ayariga further pointed out that the legal frameworks empowering the NCA were enacted by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government in 2008.
He, therefore, questioned how the same party could now claim those laws were unconstitutional.
In rebutting claims that the President’s intervention was prompted by backlash, Mr Ayariga pointed to the extremely short time span between the shutdowns and the presidential directive, arguing that such swift action was unlikely to have been driven by public pressure.
He further stressed that lawmakers must uphold and enforce the very laws they enacted, not to undermine ministers who did so.
