Dr. Gideon Boako
Information and for that matter data are important in governance and other activities of the modern world.
The foregone cannot be overlooked in democratic settings where governments in order for them to be accountable to the people must keep records, so they can defend these when the time of reckoning is due.
In our local political setting where mendacious politicking is a feature, such records are required to set the records straight.
Since exiting power, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) as alternative government waiting in the wings has weathered motley charges from the lips of their opponents. Such charges or critiquing the work of government is a normal feature of democracy, but here in our setting, mischief is a catalyst.
Some of these charges have prompted former appointees to jump into the fray to defend their stewardship, which of course is the way to go.
The Appointments Committee sittings in Parliament exposed the multitude of unsubstantiated lies and concoctions which the then opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), now in government, adopted as a campaign strategy. It was a Goebbelsian strategy of continuous presentation of untruths to the people, which with time will appear to be the truth.
Unfortunately, this position does not pass for a dictum because lies or propaganda cannot stand upright for long and would soon crumble when the truth pops up.
History is replete with evidence of truth eventually overshadowing lies and exposing their originators humiliatingly.
Each time relevant former government appointees respond to the verbal concoctions from the stable of their opponents, the truth quickly replaces the mendacious compositions.
It is our position that former appointees be ready to defend their stewardships. The public need to listen to the storytellers and the defence being put forth by the former appointees so the appropriate conclusions would be drawn.
Former President Akufo-Addo, in the light of the lies being peddled against his stewardship, rightly directed former appointees to speak up to set the records straight.
Economic progress or otherwise are determined through the presentation of comparative figures such as Gross Domestic Products, trade surplus and others.
These cannot be altered whimsically and so politicians who seek to do so are humiliated when the true figures are presented.
The NDC lying machine has not gone into hibernation yet after the elections. Ordinarily, when the polls are over, propaganda is shelved, paving the way for the new government to prove its mettle.
Unfortunately, given the quantum of lies put out by the NDC operatives during the last elections, these must be protected through fresh lies, which is why we continue to be presented with figures which cannot pass the test of integrity.
All relevant former appointees must make it a point to come out with the truth about their stewardship.
It is very verifiable which economic figures the previous government handed over to its successor. It would be unacceptable therefore when lies are being peddled, former government appointees fold their arms without responding.
For those who have spoken out in response to lies peddled against the offices they held, such interventions have shed light on the dark pictures of drivers of propaganda.
The former Finance Minister Mohammed Amin Adam and Dr. Gideon Boako have both done the country immense good by doing just that. This is the way to go.