Failure of government policies is due to poor engagement – Nana Akomea

The Managing Director of the Inter-City State Transport Company has stated that the failure of most government policies is due to poor stakeholder engagements and communication of those policies.

Nana Akomea who is a former Minister of Information stated this at a public lecture organized by the Institute of Public Relations, Ghana at the British Council Hall in Accra.

He was speaking on the theme “Citizen engagement in public service delivery: the strategic role of Public Relations.

Mr. Akomea who was also onetime Director of Communications of the NPP noted that though governments may have their plans through their manifestoes, PR practitioners at the various ministries must assert themselves in driving home the need for public engagement of those policies for buy-in and ultimately the success of those policies.

He cited examples as the closed fishing policy by the Ministry of Fisheries, mass disconnection in the Odumase area by the Power Distribution Service as some examples of engagements which could have been better managed.

The former lawmaker also said, public institutions have not provided visible feedback channels that enable the public to engage with them and send useful feedback and part of the problem of citizen engagements in the public service delivery process.

The speaker also called on education authorities to consider Public Relations modules in their Master of Business Administration programmes in order to improve the appreciation by managers of PR principles and its impact on their businesses.

He touched on the success story of ISTC where the relocation of the terminals to Nkrumah Circle and Asafo was as a result of engagement where customers complained that their stations were too far from them and the centre of activities. He noted since the relocations, Accra-Kumasi route has increased from 4 trios to 17 daily and about 15 trips from Kumasi-Accra, and increase from about 3 daily.

Nana Akomea noted that the resignation of the British Prime last week was a result of poor engagement with the members of parliament to get buy-in and hence the rejection of the BREXIT deal three times culminating in her resignation.

He noted that the cost of not engaging is dire and encouraged managers and political authorities to take the advice of the PR practitioners serious in order to avoid visible pitfalls.

The programme which was chaired by Ms. Elaine Sam, president of IPR, Ghana also had in attendance, Maj. Albert Don-Chebe and Mrs. Vicky Wireko Andoh both former presidents of IPR, Ghana

The lecture was organised by the Institute of Public Relations, Ghana as part of their thought leadership to impact society and influence the body of knowledge on the profession.