“We are not lawless as some part of the society perceive. We always make sure that we go through the necessary preparation before we put our evidence into practice”
Tina George, Minna
Ghanian undercover reporter and founder of Tiger Eye Foundation, Ghana, Anas Aremeyaw Anas has said that undercover journalists are not lawless as the society perceives them.
According to him, undercover journalists are not lawless as they collaborate with security agencies stressing that they always put their evidence into practice.
Speaking on the theme, “Undercover Journalism: Worth it or not” at the 2022 Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Journalism, Anas said he got into undercover journalism because of the type of government in place and how state institutions are poorly resourced to expose corrupt incidents.
“There must be a paradigm shift in what we do as journalism in Africa. I want my journalism to reflect and bring positive results to the society. I have realized that extreme remedies are the most appropriate approach for extreme cases.
“I cannot afford to tell stories the way other journalists do. I believe in impact journalism. Undercover Journalism has brought several pieces of evidence against the ills happening in the society,” he said.
Undercover journalists are not lawless
“We are not lawless as some part of the society perceive. We always make sure that we go through the necessary preparation before we put our evidence into practice. People say it is unprofessional but how can we get shreds of evidence against such ills in the society if we do not go undercover?
“Undercover Journalism is always done as the last resort, on cases where it has been demonstrated that the person committed the crime yesterday and will commit the crime again. We recognize the law and we go by it.
“I and my team collaborate with the police. I report to the necessary authority because I do not have the power to arrest. There is nothing wrong with journalists collaborating with security agencies,” Anas said.
He stressed that undercover journalism does not go without its challenges as he had received several threats and lawsuits when the reports come to the public, adding that he had lost a member of his team in the course of doing undercover reporting.
The Executive Director of the Wole Soyinka Center for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ), Motunrayo Alaka admonished journalists not to go into undercover journalism without having the necessary resources and support from their organizations.
“Undercover journalism is extreme with a lot of support from your organization and your mental health. Undercover Journalism is a lot of work to do and you have to be very careful. The mental health of a journalist matters”, she said.
