Ministers turning into protocol officers

Not a single day passes without the launch of a product of some sort by big corporations like the banks, mobile telephony companies, industries and Non Governmental Organizations.

As these institutions try to maximize profit, grow the size of their markets or increase their presence in the society, various strategies are being adopted.

Now it has become the norm for such organizations to fall on opinion leaders or public officers such as ministers of state to endorse a certain product or services. This is usually done through carefully organized, high profile publicity events which are graced by senior public officials.

Inasmuch as we believe that local businesses/establishments require the support of all Ghanaians, we do not think that it is good enough for public officers to virtually spend their working hours launching products or gracing occasions. It is even more disturbing when such public officers happen to be ministers.

These days ministers spend considerable amount of time at functions spewing out words they do not even understand or believe. Sometimes a whole gamut of Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Directors show up at one private event.

Last Friday TODAY sighted two cabinet ministers launching a product of a private entity. There were also at least six sitting members of Ghana’s parliament present at this function and all this happened during working hours (from 10am to 12:30p.m.,). This emerging trend is worrying and officials must be told in plain language that they cannot turn themselves into protocol officers who are only interested in winning favours from big businesses in order to fund their campaigns in 2012.

TODAY believes too much of time is being spent on activities that do not address the purpose for which people were appointed as ministers of state or even as parliamentarians.

It is imperative that our elected/appointed officials begin to appreciate the enormity of problems bedeviling Ghana and begin to work solving them instead of jumping from one function to another.

The country has been marking time since independence and we cannot afford to waste more time on mundane matters.