Prioritize Public Safety -AAG

The Executive Director of the Advertisers Association of Ghana (AAG), Francis Dadzie has tasked media practitioners to check the authenticity of products that are advertized on their platforms. He criticized radio stations that publish uncertified health products for public consumption, which could pose danger to people. This, he said, was as a result of the lack of an enforceable advertising law to mandate media practitioners to demand the license of advertisers before they air commercials. He disclosed this to BUSINESS GUIDE in Accra at the close of a three-day workshop for executives of advertising agencies, marketing companies and manufacturers on utilizing modern digital technologies to help project their brands. Indicating that the association was working hard to promote the passage of the advertising bill, which is before Parliament, he mentioned that the existence of an advertising law would ensure that media practitioners, advertiser and product owners are sanctioned for publishing information on fake products. �It is the moral responsibility of practitioners to ensure that they do not only look for the money aspect of the business but also try to look at public safety. The media must ensure that what is put out for the public is right and truthful,� he said. The director added that an advertising law would also ensure that practitioners in the industry are licensed to differentiate them from unaccredited individuals, who conveniently set up advertising agencies and place adverts in the media. �We have a section of the public that is very gullible; they accept and believe any advertisement. When consumers use an advertised product and have adverse effects, they have nowhere to turn. That is why an advertising law is important,� he explained. Mr.Dadzi said it was unethical for people to make medical prescriptions on airwaves and urged the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association to sensitize members on such unethical practices. Sergio Muller, Creative and Planning Director of A-Tono, a digital marketing solutions company, advised professionals in the advertising industry to capitalize on the availability of smartphone technologies and applications to perform their tasks effectively. Advertisers need to think about creative ways of making consumers have quick access to their products and services, he said.