The President of the Legislative Press Pool (Legispool), Henry Karmo, has asked officials of government and members of the 54th National Legislature to desist from intimidating journalists, as journalists are not their punching bags, especially journalists covering the Legislature.
He said the two-year mandate given to him by journalists assigned at the National Legislature will be used wisely, and his leadership will not relent in naming and shaming lawmakers who would use their power or position to intimidate journalists.
Henry Karmo is one of FrontPage Africa’s assigned legislative reporters. He was overwhelmingly elected by journalists assigned at the Legislature on August 2021.
Speaking at his induction ceremony, held at the ground of the Capitol Building, Henry Karmo intimated that journalists assigned at the Legislature should not use journalism to intimidate or harass lawmakers for the purpose of extorting money.
He further said his administration is open to working with the Legislature in the interest of Liberia, and members of Legispool are willing to propagate a positive image of the Legislature once the positive things are done.
“We intend to continue this relationship on the basis of mutual respect and collaboration in our separate roles (politicians and journalists). We respect your roles as politicians,” Karmo pointed out.
He said as journalists covering the first branch of government, they must demand the information needed for public consumption, but to do that they must first put themselves in a position that will constrain lawmakers to provide the needed information for public consumption, even if they do not want to.
“We can achieve this by first recognizing that we are members of the fourth estate, and by that I mean we must first respect ourselves to demand respect. Under this leadership, we will expect every member to comport themselves in the manner required. It is not going to be business as usual,” the President of Legispool stated.
Karmo also urged members of the Legislature to complain to the leadership of Legispool about harassment and intimidation from assigned reports, as his leadership will not relent on naming and shaming journalists involved.
However, the newly inducted President of Legispool promised to maintain the friendship and relationship with lawmakers, while maintaining the independence of Legispool.