Last week or so, Ghana and the international community woke up to news about the closure of the country’s mission in Washington, USA.
No sooner was the closure announced than another one followed it about its reopening.
The speed with which the actions were taken, closure and reopening, could pass for a first in the annals of the history of diplomacy in the country.
It happened at a time when calls were rife for the Foreign Affairs Minister to resign his position. The calls were prompted by a promise he made when he was in opposition that, should a president or vice president from his party travel abroad on a private jet he would resign his appointment as minister should he be given such a post. When therefore Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang travelled abroad and returned via private jet at a whopping cost to the state, many Ghanaians demanded he makes good his promise.
When the mission closure and abrupt reopening and matters arising were announced, sceptics wondered whether the diplomatic faux pas was not intended to veneer the private jet brouhaha.
Be it as it may, Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has had a wonderful respite from the pressure to resign as the diplomatic furore reigns.
When the appointee was nominated for the position, watchers of the political terrain questioned his suitability considering his unguarded propaganda and outright mendacity.
His short-lived closure of the country’s Washington mission obviously triggered conversation among the diplomatic community in the US and beyond it.
Although a brief closure, the minister should understand that a sensitive ministry such as he is heading, demands a lot of finesse in managing.
Knee-jerk actions such as quickly announcing the closure of a mission on social media does not augur well for the image of the country.
The harm this has done to the country’s image can only be imagined.
That he quickly announced a reopening is indication that he had felt the heat of the fallouts or ordered by his employer to rescind the decision.
In addition to the foregone, we have taken note of the reason for the closure – alleged financial malfeasance by staff, especially of the IT department.
The glee with which the alleged misconduct of the staff was reported on social media reminds us about the political propaganda which is an attribute of the minister.
Foreign Service officers who have served for many years to be subjected to such an image denting exercise by a propaganda expert leaves much to be desired.
Even more worrying is the mass reposting of staff at the mission and others.
It is an exercise which will not only come at a cost to the state, but offer an opportunity to victimise staff identified as non-National Democratic Congress (NDC), which would be unfortunate.
It is our hope and expectations that the minister would be mindful about the sensitivity of the office he is holding and make haste slowly and in tandem with the age-long care that diplomacy is known for.