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President Of Music Council Of Ghana Issue Strong Warning to Creative Arts Ministry – To Stop Politicizing Ghana’s Creative Arts Industry

Ekow Micah
Ekow Micah

President of Music Council of Ghana MCG, Mr. Nester Ekow Micah, has complained bitterly to GhanaCelebrities.Com about the move by the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts to establish a Creative Arts Council for Ghana’s showbiz industry.

 Mr. Micah got in touch with GhanaCelebrities.Com after reading a story reported by Ghana’s current trending entertainment print – Razz Newspaper, yesterday – Wednesday, 18th June, 2014. According to Razz Newspaper (unedited):

 “The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts has re-ingeminated their steadfastness and pledge to establish a governing council for the creative arts industry – a move that the President of Music Council of Ghana MCG, Mr. Nester Ekow Micah, disagrees.

 Mr. Nester Ekow Micah has been on the neck of the ministry ever since the latter made its intentions of establishing a Creative Arts Council known to players in the creative arts industry -with his reason being that, such an initiative might result in politicization of Ghana’s creative arts industry and eventually empower government to ‘control’ or take away the freedom creative art players are enjoying”

 GhanaCelebrities.Com got in touch with the ministry and was served with a copy of the press release that states their steadfastness and pledge to establish the governing body for Ghana’s creative arts industry to be called Creative Arts Council (unedited):

“In the year 2013, the then Ministry of Tourism was realigned by the Civil Service (Ministries) Instrument, 2013 (E. I. 1) to include culture and creative arts, in line with H.E. the President’s commitment to mainstream the subsector into the broad governance regime, and also recognize and salute the contribution of the sector to job creation, revenue generation, poverty alleviation, and as a vector of social change.

Endeavouring to learn from global best practices, the Ministry immediately recognized the need to put in place a committee to review the existing legal regime within the industry and with the view to coming up with a draft legal and regulatory framework for the sector. The committee has since submitted its report.

The report of the committee, if adopted, after stakeholder consultations and validation, will culminate in the laying in Parliament of a Creative Industry Act, which will consequently lead to the birth of the Creative Industry Scheme, and a Governing Council to administer the scheme.

The Scheme to be established will be akin to Arts Councils worldwide (or as they may be called in other countries), which are all established by enabling legislative instruments passed by their various Parliaments or Congresses. Examples include the Arts Councils of Singapore, South Africa (Act 56 of 1997), Canada (1957), Norway (1964), Zimbabwe, England, the National Endowment for the Arts of the USA (1965), among others.

It must be stated that the establishment of these councils did not and have not outlawed any individual, organization, or advocacy group in any of the countries mentioned, and Ghana, as a shining example of African democracy, will not be the odd one out.

Emphasis must also be placed on the fact that the creative industry encompasses many subsectors such as cultural sites, visual arts, performing arts, indigenous knowledge institutions, literary arts, publishing, audio visual, design and creative services, collecting societies, among others. Music, though very important, is not a subsector on its own, but only one constituent part of the performing arts.

It will therefore be out of place for any music union to attempt to stampede and compel the Ministry, and for that matter, government, into accepting it as an oversight body, even when it does not even have the force of law. The coming into force of the council should not be a threat to any existing entity, as they can still continue with their advocacy and accountability and transparency campaign activities.

After all, the existence of the Medical and Dental Council, the Ghana Legal Council, the Ghana Tourism Authority, The Ghana Education Service, among others, have not led to the outlawing of the groups like the Ghana Medical Association, the Ghana Bar Association, and the Ghana Tourism Federation respectively.

The Ministry therefore wishes to assure all lovers of the creative arts industry that any steps it is taking in the direction of establishing the creative arts council is underpinned by globally acceptable best practices, and this move will not in any way undermine the existence of relevant, active, focused, results-driven and well meaning associations or councils already around.”

Ending with GhanaCelebrities.Com, Mr. Micah harangued “the council will continue to make noise so the international community and bodies will know what is going on in Ghana! This is never done anywhere! The creative arts industry should not be politicized!

“Once the government forms such a council, politics set into the showbiz industry and that is dangerous for our growth and welfare! Another government or political party will come and they will scrap what their predecessors did and establish their own policies for the arts. They will do politics with us.

At the end of the day, we those in the arts will lose! I am very surprised the President of our land is watching on for this to go on because, I know our current President loves the arts and has good plans for us – this move is not one of them! I will be glad if he will not let this pass right under his nose.

I have issued a serious warning text message to the Minister – Elizabeth Ofosu-Agyare and the Deputy – Madam Dzifa Gomashie, warning them not to politicize the creative arts industry. If they don’t stop this art council initiative, we shall embark on a massive demonstration – as we promised them some months back.” GhanaCelebrities.Com is still following up on this story and shall update you on any latest development. Until then…MOTWUM!!



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