Broadcast journalist Lawrence Yeboah Gyan, Acting General Manager of Wisdom FM at the Catholic University of Ghana (CUG), has been named the 2025 Bono Regional Best Journalist at the 4th Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Bono Regional Awards in Sunyani.
A triple win built on hard-hitting reporting
Gyan emerged as the overall winner after clinching three competitive categories: the overall Best Journalist award, the Children’s Advocacy Award, and Best Health and Medical Care Report. His standout entry, “When the Dead Are No Longer Sacred: A Cultural and Public Health Crisis in Ghana,” investigated troubling practices around the treatment of corpses during funeral celebrations, especially among some young people, and warned of cultural, moral and public-health consequences.
The report was not crafted merely to chase accolades but to spark a national conversation on practices that could affect future generations, Gyan said while accepting the award. He described the honour as “not just a plaque, a certificate or a laptop,” but proof that courageous, ethical journalism in the public interest does not go unnoticed.
Gyan traced his roots to the Ghana News Agency, where he says he learned the core disciplines of news gathering, verification and public-interest reporting. He later worked at Sun City Radio in Sunyani as a news anchor and mid-morning show host before taking on his current role at Wisdom FM, the Catholic University’s campus station.
“This award represents the early mornings, the late nights, the deadlines, the interviews, the disappointments, the corrections, the lessons and, above all, the determination to keep going,” he said, dedicating the recognition to God, mentors, colleagues, family, sources and everyone who has supported his career.
Held at the Sweet Touch Hotel in Sunyani under the theme “Ethics, Integrity, and Impactful Journalism: Essential Ingredients for Societal Transformation,” the ceremony brought together media practitioners, traditional leaders and policymakers.
Guest speaker Professor Elvis Asare-Bediako, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Energy and Natural Resources, likened journalists to modern-day “gong beaters,” stressing their duty to inform, shape public consciousness and guide communities through “the power of words, the courage of truth, and the responsibility of influence.” He cautioned against sacrificing accuracy and professional standards in the race for speed, popularity or sensational headlines.
GJA Bono Regional Chairperson Regina Benneh Siaw used the platform to sound an alarm over illegal mining (galamsey) threatening to take hold in the Bono Region, calling on traditional authorities, state institutions and security agencies to act before more rivers, forest reserves and farmlands are destroyed.
National Democratic Congress (NDC) National Chairman Johnson Asiedu-Nketiah, whose entourage supported the event with GH¢86,000, urged journalists to track public projects, scrutinise government spending and hold officials accountable, pledging further help to secure regional GJA office accommodation.
The immediate past Bono Regional Best Journalist, Biiya Mukusah Ali of the Daily Graphic, won two awards: Best Tourism Report (Print) and Best Agroecology and Agribusiness Report. Daniel Bruce Dzirasah of the Ghanaian Times also took home two awards for Best Report on Mining and Best Development-Focused Report.
Other winners included:
Precious Semevoh (Joy News) – Climate Change and Green Transition
Claude Kumi Abisa (TV3/Media General) – Tourism (Electronic)
Emmanuel Kwadwo Gyan (Sky FM) – Best Radio Documentary
Edward Adjei-Frimpong (Business and Financial Times/freelance) – Business and Finance
Michael Sarpong-Mfum (Channel One TV) – Education
Samuel Kumi (Service Radio) – Best Morning Show Host
Osei Kwadwo Laar (Sun City Radio) – Best Newscaster in Akan
The overall Best Journalist Award was sponsored by ActionAid and Newmont Ghana, with Gyan receiving a laptop, certificates and plaques. For him, however, the night was less about trophies and more about a renewed commitment to truth, fairness and accountability in service to the public.