Anas Aremeyaw Anas during his 2013 Ted Talk.
Ghanaian Anas Aremeyaw Anas (pictured) has distinguished himself as one of the most-respected journalists coming out of Africa, with President Barack Obama even name dropping Anas as a model to be duplicated for “fearless journalism” during a speech he delivered on his 2009 visit to the West African country. Currently, the journalist — who uses a range of creative disguises to infiltrate corruption and then present his work in documentaries — has made headlines for his investigative work “Ghana in the Eyes of God, Epic of Injustice” which debuted this week and exposes more than 30 judges who take bribes.
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Anas has taken journalism to an entirely new level with his innovative approach to breaking important stories.
In order to expose corruption, which he says is holding Africa back, Anas disguises himself for the stories and has been effective in taking down nearly all of his subjects.
To date, Anas’ real identity remains a secret, lending him an anonymity that allows him access in to the nation’s biggest scandals.
In his career, Anas has posed as the Father of a disabled child in order to expose how a particular herbalist was providing poison to parents who had unwanted children.
Just when the herbalist and his team were about to administer the poison to “his child,” which was actually a prosthetic baby he built over a number of months, Anas had the police arrest them.
About Anas, the Guardian adds:
He owns an array of wigs, prosthetic masks and tiny cameras; once he feigned madness to infiltrate Ghana’s largest psychiatric hospital; and he has posed as characters ranging from street hawkers to an albino body parts trafficker. He has even dressed up as a rock to film cocoa smugglers along Ghana’s western border.
And Anas continues to work undercover, even delivering his “How I Named, Shamed, and Jailed” Ted Talk in 2013 with one of his most-distinctive disguises — hat on and beads covering his face (pictured) — as he discussed his method of collecting “hard-core evidence”:
With degrees from the University of Accra in both law and journalism, Anas’ latest scandal documents the bribes taken by judges.
In perfect Anas style, he posed as a “friend” and/or “relative” of an accused individual for two years, while he offered presiding judges money — and even a goat — to ensure that his friend would receive a shorter sentence.
Twelve high court judges and 22 lower court judges would accept the bribes, with the crimes well-documented in the secretly filmed “Ghana in the Eyes of God.“
And while a number of judges reportedly attempted to block Anas’ documentary from being released and have him jailed for contempt of court, Attorney General Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong stepped in to give Anas immunity from prosecution.
This week, the controversial film debuted at the Accra International Conference Center, with viewer and student Edwin Appiah explaining, “The queues were really something else just to get inside the building. People really came from far to see this.
“It’s very discouraging that people who are in charge of upholding the law could be doing this kind of thing. The only good thing is that least some judges turned down the bribes, so we can still have some hope.”
Popular Ghanaian actor John Dumelo also viewed the documentary, saying that the disappointing footage made him leave the venue early:
After an hour of viewing the Anas documentary….I got up and left. It’s sad. Very sad
— John Dumelo (@johndumelo1) September 22, 2015
One thing the GBA should seriously look at is the conditions of service of judges. It’s like some live in chamber and hall. It’s sad — John Dumelo (@johndumelo1) September 22, 2015
Let’s not point accusing fingers….what can we all do to help stop corruption.
— John Dumelo (@johndumelo1) September 22, 2015
Watch highlights from Anas’ “Ghana in the Eyes of God” premiere here (start video at 2:23 to skip driving through Accra intro):
Of his work, Anas recently said, “When you are dealing with bad guys in the society and you take a swipe at them and you miss, you embolden them. I have no time for that. If I pick a story that I want to do, I do it well.”
And earlier, during his Ted Talk, Anas also said, “I’m going to carry on with this kind of journalism, because I know that, when evil men destroy, good men must build and bind.”
Watch Anas’ “Chameleon” trailer, which gives a behind-the-scenes look in to his Tiger Eye Investigations Bureau, below:
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