The Arts and Tourism Writers Association of Ghana (ATWAG) condemns in no
uncertain terms the incident that marred the 2019 Vodafone Ghana Music
Awards (VGMA) at the premises of the Accra International Conference
Centre (AICC) in the early hours of Sunday, May 19, 2019.
A scuffle that happened between the respective teams of dancehall
musicians Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale led to a commotion in the auditorium
and the stoppage of the show for almost an hour. ATWAG considers the
incident very unfortunate, inappropriate and a dent on the arts industry.
In as much as we support healthy competition in the music industry, we
condemn acts that would generate unnecessary tension and could
degenerate into violence. We wish to advise Charterhouse, organisers of the
Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, to put in place better measures to forestall
future occurrences of such nature.
ATWAG also urges Charterhouse to cooperate with the security services to
investigate the matter and mete out the right sanctions where need be.
As significant partners in the arts and tourism value chain, ATWAG believes
that acts like this would hinder the progress made by the industry and also
has the tendency to mar the name Ghana carries within the international
community as a peaceful nation.
We urge Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale and their fans not to inflame the issues
any further through their utterances, but to rather stay calm in these times.
Kwame Dadzie (PRO, ATWAG)
Tel: 0242778469