Ghanaian businesses are being challenged to ensure the country is peaceful before, during and after the elections.
This is according to the Director of International Idea, Africa and West Asia, Prof. Adebayo Olukoshi.
According to him, political leaders must not be allowed to dictate a country’s destiny as they often end up seeking their interests over the national interest.
Speaking to Citi Business News, Prof. Adebayo Olukoshi said businesses must be seen to be directing the discourse and electioneering process towards economic development.
“In as much as we expect our political leaders to exercise the leadership that we expect of them, we could also have other players to fuel the necessary pressure to ensure that they move in the direction of bringing peace. This is because sometimes the politicians are engrossed in their own game of winning advantage over one another that they forget that they serve a larger constituency.”
Prof. Olukoshi further argued that business owners must be seen to call politicians to order in the bid to protect their investments.
“In Nigeria and elsewhere, businesses have played a role in ensuring that politicians don’t plunge the country into chaos. Therefore businesses must as a matter of fact also organize as stakeholders in the political system to say to the politicians there are lines that must not be crossed; in order to forge a broad consensus in society without disrupting the processes of development and economic progress.”
The Director of International Idea, Africa and West Asia, made these remarks during a lecture organized by the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG) on the theme, “Democracy and National Cohesion: Marketing a new political Paradigm.”
The National President of CIMG, Kojo Mattah, called for calm among politicians towards to the 2016 elections.
According to him, should anything go wrong, resources needed for education, health and social services will be channelled towards the resolution of internal struggles thereby adding to the woes of people especially the already vulnerable class.
“We cannot afford to repeat the kind of conflict situations around the continent and elsewhere. Let us recognize that just majority of the society is negatively affected by these conflicts, there are others who benefit from conflict situations,” Mr. Mattah stressed.
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By: Norvan Acquah – Hayford/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana