Some musicians in Ghana are still not convinced by Obuor’s account of how the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) used the GH¢ 2 million given to the music industry 5 years ago.
Music duo Gallaxy who are not satisfied with accounts made by MUSIGA President Bice ‘Obuor’ Osei Kuffuor, told Citi Showbiz that the President should publish a breakdown of how the money was spent.
“We doubt his figures. How can you use GH¢ 800, 000 for research, another GH¢ 800, 000 for music festival, and share the remaining for your administration? They should give us the breakdown. We want to know. They should publish it in the media for us to see,” they said.
Gallaxy added MUSIGA has disappointed the music industry by using the government fund for things that were not the industry’s priority.
“We have a lot of pressing needs like performance centres, studios and others. They have just wasted the money and must account for it into detail. They must account for every pesewa,” they noted.
Meanwhile, in an exclusive interview with Citi Showbiz, the President of the Musicians Union of Ghana explained that the union used the budget allocation judiciously.
According to him, the government granted only two of the components they presented in their proposal and so could not have used the money for all the other things the musicians are suggesting.
“…after reading through our proposal, the government said it could only grant two of our requests and those components were what the 2012 budget statement for the arts captured,” he said.
Obour further explained the GH¢ 2 million was earmarked for impact assessment of the music industryand the 2012 Music Fair, as was captured in the 2012 budget statement.
According to Obour, about GH¢ 800,000 used to pay for the research and its execution (eg. Paying research consultants) and GH¢ 800, 000 was also used for the Music Fair. About GH¢ 400, 000 was used for Institutional Strengthening and GH¢ 100, 000 was given to the Ghana Association of Phonographic Industries for their administration needs.
He said the results of the research has benefited the industry in diverse ways and is hopeful its long-term effects would manifest with the passage of time.
The GH¢ 2 million was given to the music sector in 2012 as part of government allocation in its fiscal budget.
Gallaxy, noted for hit songs like ‘Bokoboko,’ ‘Qualities,’ ‘Dab,’ ‘Gborgborvor,’ ‘Holla at Me’ and Woti Ate which takes a swipe at the MUSIGA President.
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By: Kwame Dadzie/citifmonline.com/Ghana