There was once a current affairs programme aired on the defunct Viasat One called the Hard Truth and it was hosted by the ‘daring’ Nana Akosua Konadu.
In an interview with NEWS-ONE’s, the beautiful hostess revealed that Hard Truth will move to Joy News on June 7 after previous platform, Viasat One, was sold to the owners of Kwesé TV.
Below is an excerpt:
What’s your opinion on Ghanaians and speaking the truth?
Don’t we all like to dodge at times and not go straight to the point? But I think that we have moved away from actually shelving our responsibilities. What I mean by that is people are tired of irresponsibility. We are tired of not telling the fact. People want to come and tell their story because all of us want Ghana to be a better place. It used to be ‘we are scared to say’ it but now we want to die hard for Ghana. We want to be true patriots for our nation. So yes, it is not difficult at all telling the truth now.
What is the ‘Hard Truth’ show about?
It says the story the way it is. It is telling us what is happening in your institutions, your responsibilities given you, what have you done with it? I mean are you being truthful? I mean if you go into an organisation you are supposed to be profitable, that’s the hallmark of every organisation. Are you being productive where you are? So it’s about telling us the one cedis we gave you, have you made more? So like that tenants in the Bible whom their master gave them sometime to work the money and at the end of the day someone came and said ‘ooh I got ten more’, ‘I got five more’ and then very lazy one came to say ‘I have hidden it’. What happened? He was punished.
So yes we try to bring out the truth and the aim of this is to actually keep our leaders on their toes and that someone is watching so let’s do the right thing. So we talk to captains of industry, we talk to politicians, the private sector, etc. But the interesting thing is we talk to the leaders themselves. We believe they have the answers that we are looking for. So that makes us different from others.
Were there occasions where you noticed your guests were being economical with the truth?
Most of the time, yes. Don’t we all want to look good on camera and say ‘oh yes this guy is doing well’ but in actual fact there are issues. So it is very necessary that I keep the guests on their toes to actually tell us the actual picture. Yes it will be dodgy dodgy: I mean have you stolen some money, oh no I don’t. But you stole some money? I mean we try to find ways and means of questioning you to tell us the exact truth. So yes, they dodge but at the end of the day we get some truth out of them if not 100 percent.
What’s the latest about the show?
The show has been in existence almost five years. We used to be on Viasat One. The Hard Truth is an Enak Consult programme and because Viasat One is now sold to KweséTV, we are moving onto a bigger platform which is Joy News. It used to be a one-on-one and yes we are maintaining that. We still have panel discussion and sometimes we even depend on what’s trending and what our viewers want to know or want to hear.
What makes you stand out?
I would say that after every show we look at comments from viewers and most of the people are satisfied. I mean you don’t create a show because you want to be on TV and talk and dress up and that’s it. You actually want to make an impact. People call in and say it was a great show and not just being a great show we actually solve issues. I remember we had this interview with ex-President John Kufuor and he talked about allegations made about him being corrupt and he cleared all of that. People were happy the president cleared their agitated minds and all of that. So I think yes, sometimes Ghana it is quite difficult to have things work right away. It is a process and what we can do is talk about it. We are going to talk about it till the right thing is done and I will repeat again once our viewers are happy and say ‘oh this issue was talked about well’.
So who are we likely to see in the upcoming episodes?
It depends on what’s happening and we are trying to have other guests from other parts of Africa. Won’t it be great to have American President Donald Trump on the show? That will be fantastic. So we are looking at not just Ghana but other countries as well.
It is not easy but we are praying for the best. It will be great to have ex-President John Mahama, President Nana Addo and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia on the show as well. Our financial minister will be fantastic. Even the leaders of ISIS; I wish to know why they do what they do. That will be great.
What issues or questions would you want to ask Donald Trump?
I want to know when he is starting the wall; the great wall (laughs). I think with the upcoming season, the most amazing part is to be on Joy News because they stand for the truth and they have a wider audience. It is a great area for us and I know it going to be amazing experience.
What issues should we anticipate for in the coming season?
I can’t directly say that I want to talk about a particular issue now. It depends on what’s happening…like the sad lynching of the soldier Captain Maxwell Mahama and the rising issues around it. Things like that and the scandals that are happening. It is not just talking about it but also getting results. That’s what we will be focusing on.
What is your take on mob justice in Ghana?
We simply can’t put the law into our hands. It is about time we take national security seriously and it’s not advisable we put the law into our own hands. I think we should allow the law to work. Government promised more jobs if our youth had more jobs I don’t think they will be idle to rob people and hence some of these things. Again, we as a people should know the law like the 10 commandments which is on finger tips. It will be easier for the youth not to flout them. They would know if you do this, this will be done to you, etc.
What are some of the challenges you go through on the show?
There are a lot of challenges in shooting the Hard Truth. It is not always what you see is what happened. Sometimes the guests get angry and they want to leave the set. We have to beg them not to go.
What’s new about Akosua Konadu?
I changed my name now. I am now Asante Samuels because I am married now. We had a very quiet wedding ceremony. But I still use my Akosua Konadu and I’m now a mother. I’m a simple but serious person. I take my work very serious. I love what I do. People say I’m intimidating but I don’t see myself like that. I’m a very free spirited person. It’s just the show I mean that’s not what I am. I am just working.
The daughter of Church of Pentecost pastor, Rev Samuel Asare Konadu, I schooled at the Yaa Asantewaa Girls’ Senior High School. From there, I went to the Pentecost University where I read Human Resource Management.
Any advice for your followers?
We should all try and do something good for Ghana in our small corners. Whatever we do affect Ghana in a certain way. Again, we shouldn’t put the laws into own hands and most importantly let’s pray for our leaders because the Bible instructs us to do so.
