Voice of America has terminated or proposed to terminate 15 members of its Hausa service, following allegations of improper conduct, including the acceptance of improper payments.
VOA Director Amanda Bennett said in an email to staff Thursday that the agency’s leadership was made aware of the allegations “in recent months” and launched several investigations.
“While privacy laws prevent us from disclosing any specifics, it is following the completion of these investigations that these terminations and proposed terminations are occurring,” she wrote.
The VOA Hausa service broadcasts to Nigeria and Niger and extensively covers events in that part of Africa.
Bennett said the improper payments came “from an official in the coverage area.”
“A separate investigation has been launched to determine if any coverage by VOA was improperly influenced,” she said. “If any such influence is discovered, we will deal with it promptly and transparently.”
“What’s more, if any other instances of improper payments are discovered in any service anywhere in VOA, we are committed to investigating them thoroughly and dealing with them promptly as well.”
Bennett said the leadership of VOA’s Africa Division gave total support to the investigations and cooperated in the decision to terminate or propose to terminate the affected people.
“They, like all of us, are committed to the highest standards of ethical behavior and will not tolerate any infractions,” she said.
She added: “Nothing is more important here at VOA than the trust our audiences place in us. To maintain that trust, nothing is more important than maintaining the highest possible standards of journalistic, professional, legal and moral integrity.”
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