December 1, 2021
By: Albert Baron Ansu
Ministry of Information and Communication has proven its very essence in leading the communications process to connect with the masses comprehensively. The ministry was given an assignment and it is a passing A grade from objective and competent marking.
The ministry has in turn passed the same assignment for us the media to do. How are set to pass that assignment can be assessed in the coming days, weeks and even months to come next year.
If we are asked to do an appraisal of what has transpired in the Bo retreat, there is reason to dim the lopsided readings and stress the positive.
Suffice it to say that the concluded retreat at Bo Inn designed in the context of political accountability can best be described as a huge success. For dozens of ministries, department and agencies to be hosted with almost all media houses and civil groups in attendance is no mean feat. The presentations were well moderated and measured. The dialogue embedded in question an answers session was just excellent as it helped to elicit lot of information and dispelling of misconceived issues such as the lie that some government officials connected to Chancery scam have behind the scene paid so money to the ACC. This was one point of contention that the ACC presenter sought to set the record straight.
Without discarding the huge cost of what went into the process, it is fair to say that this government is going beyond lip service to deliver on transparency and accountability. It is important to stress this point besides going into the cases by case presentations-aligning manifesto sector achievements, targets and works including the challenges that abound.
The Bo retreat has provided a surfeit of information and dossier of data for media and CSOs to mine. It was not intended that journalists can go in dine and wine and return to their seats supinely to fail to do justice to the materials that have been thrown at us. It is not possible that all materials from the MDAs have been captured. Sharing these presentations to media houses and CSOs can be an activity to follow up on.
When that is done the question arises: newspapers, radio and television what are we all doing about those story ideas and headlines to cast out from Anti Corruption, Commission Marine, Trade and Industry, Lands, Environment, Agriculture, Sports, National Disaster Management, Ministry of Finance Political Affairs, NATCOM, among others? The question is hanging in the air but we under obligation to start doing stories and commentaries on the various issues to enlighten people on the untold success stories that we have not been privy about.
We can however celebrate with Minister Mohamed R Swaray and his team. For one thing they were swift in problem solving and ensuring that the planned event did not veer of the dale. Like the Minister of Political Affairs Yumkella stated this initiative deserves more government budgetary allocation to do more than a PR spin around the good things that are coming of MDAs. Media and CSOs have modules to deal with-testing the claims and assertions from power points by doing the leg work to check facts and figures and produce evidence and hope based analysis to can be uplifting rather than hanging to unsubstantiated baloney in promoting partisan agendas. I trust our comrades are up to that task.