General News of 2012-06-12

‘Inexperienced’ gov’t communicators will cause NDC defeat - Pressure group

A group calling itself the Coalition for Integrity in Governance (COFIIG) says government communication team should be scraped to save the ruling party from defeat ahead of the December polls.

According to the group, the immature conduct of some communication team members of government has rather deepened the internal wrangling in the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).

The group purporting to be members of the NDC claims that the ‘inexperienced’ government communicators have usurped the functions of the propaganda unit of the party.

COFIIG concerns come in wake of the apparent communication gap between of the party and government.

The communication team seems to have taken over the propaganda unit of the NDC making some party executives handicapped on key government activities to communicate effectively to Ghanaians.

Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme Monday, the Director of Research for COFIIG, Justice Yeboah said members of the government communication team only propagate their egos than the position of the Mills-led administration.

He alleged that hardcore members of the NDC switch off their television and radio sets when they see and hear the “pompous and arrogant” young men because he says they don’t have the NDC at heart.

“The members of government communication team are not communicating any message but rather just annoying voters. When they go on radio and television stations, they talk as if the world belongs to them” he added.

Justice Yeboah likened the uncertainty in the NDC to the biblical Babel where God struck them with spirit of confusion which made them speak with different languages.

The COFIIG Research Director blamed the government communication team for the rivalry between President John Mills and former President Jerry Rawlings due to what he says are their persistent insults of the former first couple.

He noted that since there are no specific requirements for becoming a government communications team member, people use diabolic means like backbiting to attract the attention of 'big men' who recruit members into the communication team.

“They [government communication team] are inexperienced; there is a big irreconcilable difference between a talkative and a communicator so they must join the party’s propaganda unit and learn from them”.

Justice Yeboah believes to avert any electoral misfortune; the NDC’s communication must move into the frontline and start communicating on behalf of government ahead of a crucial election in December.

“People are wondering why inexperienced talkative are the ones communicating for the government. The question is, if hardcore NDC members are not excited to listening to them [then] how can they appeal to floating voters” he quizzed.