New wine in old wineskins? - Ola Michael drags Bawumia's manifesto committee for creative arts

Movie producer and entertainment pundit, Ola Michael, has slammed the New Patriotic Party (NPP) manifesto committee for the creative arts sector.

According to him, they are not serious and have no new vision.

The committee, recently constituted by the NPP flagbearer, Mahamudu Bawumia is led by Juliet Asante, the CEO of the National Film Authority, along with among others, Prince David Osei, as well as experts and government officials.

The committee is expected to come up with policies that would boost the tourism and creative arts ecosystem.

However, speaking in an exclusive interview with GhanaWeb Entertainment’s Isaac Dadzie, Ola Michael said the committee was basically going to recycle old promises with old minds put in charge of delivering the said policies.

“In the very letter that released the first list of committee chairs, in the second paragraph, he said they are going to do a holistic review of 2016 and 2020 manifestos.

“I see that as bad faith, because you say you have a new vision, you are going to lead with a new vision, but now you are going to review the old vision towards the new one?

"What has a new vision got to do with the old ones? So I'm thinking they are going to review and look at the things that they can pick out from there (old manifestos) because there's nothing new to be done,” he stated.

Ola Michael singled out Juliet Asante, the CEO of the National Film Authority (NFA), who was named as the chairperson of the tourism, arts and culture sub-committee, and accused her of hijacking the NFA and disappointing the film industry for the past seven years.

He questioned her ability to lead the new committee to draft feasible policies due to her ‘non-performance’ at the NFA.

“You make Juliet Asante chairman of the tourism, arts and culture committee. Is she not the lady in charge of NFA and what has been achieved?

"The NFA has disappointed the film industry for the past seven years, the NFA has become a Juliet Asante association, and she's the CEO. The NFA will only do what Juliet Asante says. The board members or the board are irrelevant to her.

“And then you bring this same old mind to now foster a certain new vision. How? Who puts a new wine in an old wineskin?” he questioned.

Ola Michael said he did not trust the committee to produce a comprehensive and transformative manifesto that would address the needs and aspirations of the creative arts sector.

He urged the NPP to find new people who would align with the new vision and not toy with the minds of the creative arts practitioners.

“I don't want people to put a lot of hope in them. If your new vision is going to be driven by the same old vision, the same people who have disappointed this very vision that you are part of, that you are trying to run away from, then what is the new vision?

“You have a new vision, Dr. Bawumia. Find new people who will align with the new vision, but don't bring out the same old few with the same old mind. It means there's nothing new they are going to provide.

"And trust me, if we do due diligence with the manifesto they will bring, you'll see repetitions of stuff, but coated with different language. They are just toying with our minds,” he lamented.

ID/SARA

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