Euphoria on privatisation going down

The euphoria on privatisation is going down throughout the world, Mr Frank Ocran, Executive Chairman of the State Enterprises Commission, said at Akosombo on Friday.

He said, "10 years ago, the idea of privatisation was in flower, but now people are asking why we are privatising".

Mr Ocran said research had shown that private organisations employed personnel from the public sector to run their enterprises for them and wondered why the public sector was not doing well .

He was speaking at the closing of a two-day workshop on promoting corporate governance in the public sector for Board Members and Management of State Owned Enterprises (SOE's) in the country at Akosombo.

Running state enterprises was more complicated, he said, adding that, "The whole Akosombo is in the hands of the Volta River Authority. The whole Akosombo Township is run as a State Owned Enterprise".

According the Executive Chairman, "SOE's do a lot of public good and do not pollute the environment, for instance".

Speaking on the Legal Framework of Corporate Entities and State Owned Corporations in Ghana's Public Sector, Mr. J. A. Aryittey, Legal Practitioner, said an impressive legal framework had been laid for the public sector institutions.

"If man had the courage to use these for development we could make some advances. If the leadership turns a blind eye to omissions and commissions at variance with the legal framework, plans for development may not materialise soon enough," he said.

Earlier at the opening ceremony, the Chief of Staff, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani, had told members of the Boards to let their examples speak louder than their precepts.

He said the profitability of companies was essential but pointed out that focusing on financial gains alone was not enough.

Mr Mpiani told them to ensure that they contributed to environmental and social values.

"Good corporate citizenship is the name of the game", the Chief of Staff said.

According to him, some Chairpersons did not know their limits and asked for perks like cars and accommodation from Management.

When these were refused, tensions came about, he noted.

The Chief of Staff said that some Managements also showered Boards of Directors with perks, which compromised the work of the Board.

Mr Mpiani said transparency was necessary otherwise they would not be trusted, adding that, "a leader who is not trusted does not last long".

Forty-four participants from various public institutions attended the workshop organised by the State Enterprises Commission.