How Do You Understand Culture Of Silence? Ursula Questions Sam Jonah

Communications and Digitisation minister, Ursula Owusu Ekuful in reaction to Sam Jonah’s comment about a “self-imposed culture of silence” where people do not feel the need to speak about things happening in the country has wondered what Mr. Jonah meant by culture of silence.

According to her, the government has not gagged anyone from speaking and wondered where that culture of silence would be coming from.

“I don’t think people are no longer talking…it is not the government that is preventing people not to speak either by force or coercion or fear or intimidation. There is a multiplicity of channels in which people express themselves. In the past, it was only the TV and radio stations as well as the newspapers that people feel to express their views, today, everybody can express his or herself provided he or she has a smart device and publish it globally on Social Media,” she said on Asempa FM.

“Who is preventing who? Maybe we don’t understand the definition of culture of silence and maybe that is where the conversation should start. What do we mean by a culture of silence?” she quizzed.

She added, “his use of the culture of silence, I don’t really understand. It is like comparing apples and oranges; if it is the same situation, we were under the military regime which made Adu Boahen’s and PV Ansah’s challenge the status quo, which coercive power of the state is preventing people from criticizing the government?”

Source: GhanaFeed.com