At about 9:15am today December 29, 2011, I heard my dogs bark and was drawn to the gate by the incessant barking of the dogs only to be met by a gentleman with a knapsack on his back curiously taking a study of my features. We exchanged pleasantries and I asked him of his mission. He smiled and spoke in Broken English that he was from the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation [GBc] and that he is a member of a ‘Task Force’ moving from house to house to inspect TV Licences.
I asked him what License he meant and that if he was unaware of the Public announcement from the same Ghana Broadcasting Corporation [GBC] somewhere in the middle of the year suspending the payment of TV Licenses till further notice? He admitted he was aware BUT they are just going from house to house “gathering data on all those who have Television sets and the CODES of their Licences”.
I was disconcerted and told him I could not comprehend his arguments. I advised him to go back to GBC and pick up either a letter of authority or an Identity Card before I grant him entry to my compound.
Immediately after this exchange, I made a few calls to the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation to ascertain this unusual exercise. Interestingly, I was informed to let the Police pick up any person who comes again purporting to be from the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and on such a mission.
My ephemeral encounter with this odd young man aroused my sense of curiosity and security and I wondered how many homes he had been before finally making it to my place and where he was going from there and how much money he had extorted from these innocent residents in his attempt to threaten them with one action or the other.
We are still in the festive season and I recall the Ghana Police Service warned the public that we should be in the lookout for suspicious characters that might come by our homes and offices under the guise of fixing broken pipes, checking utility bills or to deliver parcels from unknown persons. These people could be thieves or armed robbers who are on a scouting mission to identify possible targets.
In as much as we should be conscious as citizens not to fall for such tricksters and fraudsters, I think it is equally important that we drum home the sophisticated modus operandi of these hoodlums walking about neatly dressed and in some cases with fake ID Cards.
These institutions that mandate others to carry out such duties on their behalf must duly inform the public on these operations and their timeline so residents are not taken by surprise.
In this particular case, I expect the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and well as other media houses to repeat that announcement to the public to avoid situations as I found myself in this morning.
I wish all my readers Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
