CSOs, Think tanks, were once your hallowed friends - Franklin Cudjoe tells NPP

Founding President of policy think tank, Imani Africa, Franklin Cudjoe, has criticized Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, for disregarding the views of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) on some important matters concerning the country, reminding him that CSOs were once highly regarded friends of the governing New Patriotic Party when it was in opposition.

Mr Cudjoe vehemently disagrees with utterances by the Information Minister that suggests that once the ruling party approves a deal in Parliament, the views of CSOs do not matter.

He cites the disregard of views by CSOs on matters such as the presidential directive to the Auditor-General to proceed on his accumulated leave and the raging controversy on the Agyapa Mineral Royalties deal as examples.

Some CSOs have demanded that the government suspend the Agyapa Mineral Royalties deal, which seeks to secure the country’s Royalties for a loan, and make the details of it known before going any further.

But government has, through the Information Minister, has dismissed the demand, arguing that the deal received the thorough scrutiny of Parliament and therefore is in the best interest of the country.

Mr. Cudjoe warned that the attitude of the government is unacceptable and could spell doom for the country.

“Oppong-Nkrumah effectively says when the government of Ghana secures a majoritarian partisan approval for any type of deal, the views of CSOs before or after do not matter. Sorry my bro, we CSOs respectfully disagree."

"The flagrant disregard for the views of CSOs in some crucial matters such as AGYAPA and DOMELEVO is not on. Remember we were once your hallowed friends. And like the graves in a cemetry stare us the living, you may be saying to CSOs that ‘we were once like you’. We pray it is not sooner,” he wrote.

Oppong-Nkrumah effectively says when the government of Ghana secures a majoritarian partisan approval for any type of deal, the views of CSOs before or after do not matter. Sorry my bro, we CSOs respectfully disagree.

— Franklin CUDJOE (@lordcudjoe) August 25, 2020

The flagrant disregard for the views of CSOs in some crucial matters such as AGYAPA, DOMELEVO is not on. Rembr, we were once your hallowed friends. And like the graves in a cemetry stare us the living,may be saying to CSOs that 'we were once like you'. We pray it is not sooner.

— Franklin CUDJOE (@lordcudjoe) August 25, 2020

Meanwhile the Agyapa Mineral Royalties deal continues to court controversy as news has emerged that the son of Senior Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo’s son, Kofi Osafo-Maafo is involved in the deal.