Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa
Somewhere in the mid 1980s, information, communication and education otherwise referred to as ICE came into vogue to enable businesses and state institutions to engage stakeholders to buy into their values.
This only tells us about the importance of communication in efforts to get the public well educated to avoid propaganda taking centre stage in the body politic.
That is why we think the government’s communication team should step up its game to set the agenda in the country.
Oftentimes the government has looked on helplessly while the NDC and its collaborators in the media, academia, civil society and some traditional and religious leaders hijack the media space to do John Mahama’s so-called rescue mission in 2024. Now it appears a Chief in Dormaa is more interested in getting John Mahama elected than the supporters of the party.
If some media houses are not bent on spewing lies to cause disaffection for the government, why are they still saying that the BoG headquarters project costs $250 million after Governor Addison has set the record straight by stating it will cost $121 million?
These media houses believe “Quantity Surveyors” Okudzeto Ablakwa and Ato Forson more than those constructing the project.
Brethren do you see what these Goebbels have done to the media in the era of fact-checking as the latest canon of journalism practice?
The NPP should sit up to avoid a repeat of the NDC misinformation of 2008 when Fifi Kwetey under the guise of setting the record straight lied about former President Kufuor and the NPP government only to tell the whole world at his vetting that it was political talk. This tragedy should be avoided in 2024.
The government has done its best in steering the affairs of state in spite of the global challenges. This is not the time to give up the governance of the country, especially as the NPP gears up to ‘break the 8’.
We have always told Ghanaians that there is no denying the fact that we are in hard times, and like COVID-19 this too shall pass.
It appears not many of our compatriots are ready for the sacrifices but we can assure them that their toils would not be in vain.
Also, they must bear in mind that the Goebbels in the NDC have realised that if they continued repeating the lies often enough the public will accept their propaganda as the gospel truth. If that were not the case will any right thinking person consider the present location of BoG conducive and not a security risk?
For the NDC, the good things in the country must happen only under their watch, otherwise why will they supervise the relocation of the AMA offices, a less sensitive institution to Kinbu near the Accra City Hotel?
That construction was at no cost to the nation, and if that were so let the NDC tell us it was done from their personal contribution. We are very much aware that multi-party democracy is a contest of ideas in order to regain power but the politicking must be well informed unlike their deliberate efforts to poison the atmosphere with their empty noises and threats.
The NPP government must be ready for them to bring their propaganda on and be met with the NPP’s issue-based campaign unlike John Mahama’s scary alternative of dumsor and other vision-less policies.
We back Dr. Bawumia’s challenge to Mr Mahama to mention one pro-poor policy under his previous administration and in future not the piggery project support for a Muslim woman and “small small hen coops and pigsty”. Notwithstanding the cost, the new headquarters building of BoG is farsighted as presently the apex bank cannot breathe at its congested location in Accra Central.
Let the central bank engage the public the more with better and greater arguments to defeat the NDC propaganda. Get off our back and give the government the right to conclude its mandate and join the NPP and other political parties for the mandate of the people in December 2024. Until then, the NDC must put up with the Akufo-Addo government or sharrap.