IMANI'S 2014 Best and Worst Public Sector Leaders in Ghana

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• Prof Lungu 10 years ago

  Good effort and good service for the People of Ghana, we must say!
  
  READ: "...Chief of Staff....
  Tamale Airports was claimed to have been constructed at the cost of $100m and a mere refurbishment of the Kumasi Airport Runw ...
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  Good effort and good service for the People of Ghana, we must say!
  
  READ: "...Chief of Staff....
  Tamale Airports was claimed to have been constructed at the cost of $100m and a mere refurbishment of the Kumasi Airport Runway could swallow $29m of our taxes when we know that Ethiopia is building from scratch three very modern airports for a total of $64m.
  
  OUR COMMENT: The Mahama-Bagbin NDC government seems to operate as if they know that a lot of money can be gotten "on airfields", some of which can be easily aligned into their large pockets by inflating cost to the people.
  
  ITEM: It ought to be helpful to all, as IMANI publishes these critiques of government, that they themselves provide a summary detailing where their funds originate, and what they use them for, at the same time. A lot of people want to know that. A case in point: The recent $10K payment by the Moroccan Ambassador to IMANI was weird, and quite unsettling to many, at least given the manner "the event" was reported on paper.
  
  Publish it, IMANI, and let who ever wants to believe, believe!

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• francis kwarteng 10 years ago

  Prof. Lungu,
  
  Good day.
  
  I have always wanted answers to the concerns you raise under ITEM. This is very important.
  
  Hoever, I have visited IMANI's website for some possible answers--to no avail.
  
  Let's see if the le ...
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  Prof. Lungu,
  
  Good day.
  
  I have always wanted answers to the concerns you raise under ITEM. This is very important.
  
  Hoever, I have visited IMANI's website for some possible answers--to no avail.
  
  Let's see if the leadership of IMANI has the balls to respond to your query forthrightly.
  
  That said, I am not too certain if the government can make IMANI tax records available to the public or, to put it more bluntly, if the leadership of IMANI can make these records available to the public.
  
  I know this asking is controversial but, somehow, this question must be answered nonetheless.
  
  Thanks for raising an important issue.

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• Prof Lungu 10 years ago

  Francis,
  We are saying perhaps IMANI should have that IMANI-funder summary in this "annual report" of public agencies, and all be satisfied, or damned.
  
  No Ghanaian should have to go to the IMANI website, or read the IMAN ...
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  Francis,
  We are saying perhaps IMANI should have that IMANI-funder summary in this "annual report" of public agencies, and all be satisfied, or damned.
  
  No Ghanaian should have to go to the IMANI website, or read the IMANI annual report to their funders, for that "pithy" of a summary.
  
  So, it ought not be the government that does that, via tax records, unless they do that to/for all similar organizations/groups. However, if the government finds gross errors in IMANI data/report, the people fund public servants to respond in the same forums, professionally.
  
  IMANI is doing a good job for all the People!

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• francis kwarteng 10 years ago

  Prof. Lungu,
  
  I perfectly agree.
  
  Thanks for the additional clarification.

  Prof. Lungu,
  
  I perfectly agree.
  
  Thanks for the additional clarification.

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• mojingles 10 years ago

  Francis, I am stunned by your fondness for Imani....and its purportedly stated goal of influencing public policy for the greater good.
  
  If blabbermouth, Cudjoe has any good ideas to offer government and public institutions ...
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  Francis, I am stunned by your fondness for Imani....and its purportedly stated goal of influencing public policy for the greater good.
  
  If blabbermouth, Cudjoe has any good ideas to offer government and public institutions, he should do so discreetly, away from public glare and devoid of the acerbic criticism that has come to define his rants and raves.
  
  After all, the western based think tanks that Cudjoe modeled his after, like the AEI...the American Enterprise Institute(right wing) and the Brookings Institution(left wing) the big boys in the think tank world in the United States.... do exert considerable influence on government policy and legislation in the U.S. Congress.
  
  But they go about their business subtly, behind the scenes, so much so that if you are not a political junkie you won't know they exist.
  
  Imani is well-intentioned and may ultimately turn out to be transformative in the formulation of public policy....however, Cudjoe ought to dramatically alter his approach. All he has done to date by his constant barrage of criticism of anything and everything that emanates from the NDC government is to alienate many and to portray his outfit as an appendage of the NPP. It is self-defeating, if you ask me.
  I would advise that he cultivates a dedicated following, a small group of intellectuals, politicians, students and professionals who would read and live by every policy paper that he churns out.....

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• francis kwarteng 10 years ago

  Mojingles,
  
  Happy New Year!
  
  My agreement with Prof. Lungu had to do with getting IMANI to tell the public how they are funded and who their funders are.
  
  I say so because I find the organization too partisan in their ...
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  Mojingles,
  
  Happy New Year!
  
  My agreement with Prof. Lungu had to do with getting IMANI to tell the public how they are funded and who their funders are.
  
  I say so because I find the organization too partisan in their public pronuncements and research publications.
  
  I may be wrong but it looks to me it is more ideologically slanted toward the NPP than to the NDC (and the other political parties).
  
  Aside that, the organization tends to promote Western (corporate, capitalist) at the expense of our national interest. Thus, I have always had issues with IMANI since its creation.
  
  I also agree that it did critique Kufuor and his government, but also find that whatever the NDC government does seems to be wrong in the eyes of the leadership of IMANI. Again I may be wrong.
  
  That is why I once suggested in one of my articles on Ghanaweb that an alternative think-tank, a "scientific" one, be founded to serve as a check on institutions like IMANI. I know a few like that but none is as vocal and noisy as IMANI.
  
  Based on the facts above, Mojingles, you should understand why I think institutions like IMANI (and others like it) should make sources of their funding public.
  
  Then and only then would we know how and why they are ideological slanted that way. It is too easy to speculate where the organization's ideological allegiances lie, but divulging sources of their funding will surely put an end to unhealthy speculations and conjectures. This is the part I share with Prof. Lungu.
  
  That is not to say everything IMANI does is wrong in my reckoning. I believe you agree with me on that one? On the other hand I don't see that "independence" the leadership claims to have. And "most" of the forces IMANI publicly identifies with are forces connected to the NPP. I hope I am not wrong on this one too.
  
  Mojingles, I hope I have said enough to clarify my position. IMANI (and others) need to make that information available to the public. This should be an easy task for them. I want to know where some of their influences originate. Let me know what you think.
  
  All errors are mine!
  
  Thanks.

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• mojingles 10 years ago

  Kwarteng, young man, I could not agree with you more....at least a disclosure of its source(s) of funding will, maybe, just maybe dispel the notion, widespread as it is, that Imani is a puppet of some foreign private or state ...
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  Kwarteng, young man, I could not agree with you more....at least a disclosure of its source(s) of funding will, maybe, just maybe dispel the notion, widespread as it is, that Imani is a puppet of some foreign private or state sponsor.
  
  I am at a lost as to why the organization is so brash and loud, trotting out ideas that are clearly geared towards painting the NDC as weak and inept. And I am no fan of the NDC at all....I just think it is about time Cudjoe retreats into his lair or risk becoming irrelevant. Happy New Year, young man.

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• Prof Lungu 10 years ago

  Africans/Ghanaians need to learn to think "outside the box."
  
  You make is sound that there is a balance with "AEI...the American Enterprise Institute(right wing)... the Brookings Institution(left wing)... big boys...think t ...
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  Africans/Ghanaians need to learn to think "outside the box."
  
  You make is sound that there is a balance with "AEI...the American Enterprise Institute(right wing)... the Brookings Institution(left wing)... big boys...think tank world in the United States."
  
  There is no balance there!
  
  Imagine "left wing"/Democrats/Senators earned over 20 million votes more than "(right wing)/Republicans/Senators, during the last election. Yet, Republicans now control the US Senate.
  
  IMANI is doing a fantastic job for all Ghanaians, including those who do not have time, or the resources, to be "political junkies".
  
  So we agree: "Imani is well-intentioned"!. That should matter a lot, when you do not have a personal seat in Parliament to rest on, for information, the way President Mahama is now telling Ghanaians.

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• KKO 10 years ago

  Is it not enough that they publish their audited report? What is wrong with an NGC soliciting and receiving a donation form an embassy? In the UK government actually funds a percentsge of the annuan budgets of such organisati ...
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  Is it not enough that they publish their audited report? What is wrong with an NGC soliciting and receiving a donation form an embassy? In the UK government actually funds a percentsge of the annuan budgets of such organisations. I once worked for one group like that.
  
  Are you worried that they are bringing in the open the corruption and incompetence of a hopeless government?

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• Prof Lungu 10 years ago

  KKO,
  We read most of the comments related to that "giving".
  
  There is a drum-beat refrain, if IMANI is being attentive!
  
  We are not saying receiving a donation form an embassy is wrong. The way it was reported is one of ...
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  KKO,
  We read most of the comments related to that "giving".
  
  There is a drum-beat refrain, if IMANI is being attentive!
  
  We are not saying receiving a donation form an embassy is wrong. The way it was reported is one of push-backs - it was bizarre, given our interests.
  
  You want to know "Is it not enough that they publish their audited report?"
  
  Our Response: This is practically analogous to the President telling Ghanaians to go to Parliament for information about loans received by his administration. This is totally ludicrous, on too many grounds we do not care to list.
  
  You will agree IMANI is in the business of promoting good governance, to include transparency. If you had a chance to read Mr. Kwarting's comment(s), he indicates there is no information when he last looked - on IMANI's website.
  
  ITEM: Average Ghanaians should not have to go get IMANI's "audited report", (go to Parliament!), or go to IMANI's website, to get a summary of the sources/sums of funds
  
  we are saying perhaps it can be effectively/transparently accomplished in the same "Annual Review/Report" of government agencies IMANI publishes.
  
  So no!
  
  Prof Lungu is far from "worried that they are bringing in the open the corruption and incompetence of a hopeless government", as you put it!
  
  Our comments are no way intended to critique IMANI with respect to their latest report on Ghana government agencies, at this point.

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• bismark owusu 10 years ago

  good work done

  good work done

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• Nii 10 years ago

  Imani is not credible enough to access anybody.

  Imani is not credible enough to access anybody.

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• Norsaid 10 years ago

  Some portions of your assessment are correct and realistic. For intance, the ordinary person on the street would have thought that the NHIA was performing badly given the numerous complaints from the service providers. But if ...
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  Some portions of your assessment are correct and realistic. For intance, the ordinary person on the street would have thought that the NHIA was performing badly given the numerous complaints from the service providers. But if you observed how the NHIA transitioned from a very corrupt, poltical looting and share organ in 2008 to a very efficient public organization currently, you will appreciate what IMANI is saying.But pls IMANI dont gloss over questions of your own credibility. Be transparent and less talkative.

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