Politics
[FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE] Establish a Committee to Investigate the Creative Arts Agency’s Activities Under the Previous Administration – FOCAP
The Foundation of Concerned Arts Professionals (FOCAP) is urging the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Creative Arts to promptly establish a committee to probe and investigate the numerous activities conducted under the Ministry and its agencies during the previous administration.
There have been multiple discrepancies within the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Creative Arts that should not be overlooked and require immediate investigation.
FOCAP has consistently stated over the past four years that Gyankromah Akuffo Addo illegally occupied the Executive Secretary position at the Creative Arts Agency and conducted business and operations on behalf of the agency for the creative sector without a board in place.
- She signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Expertise France agency to support Ghana’s music industry and address challenges in the copyright system. The French government, in collaboration with the French Development Agency (AFD) and the French Ministry of Economy, allocated €500,000 to fund the project, which is set to commence in June 2023 and conclude in June 2025.
2. In 2022, she formed a creative arts education committee and tasked it with working with the Ministry of Education to ensure that creative arts are taught in schools.
- Gyankromah Akuffo Addo allegedly secured a US$25 million contract in 2022 but later released a statement refuting these claims, insisting that it was her personal expenditure used for the decoration of the Tetteh Quarshie Bridge.
4. Many unfinished amphitheatres are scattered across the country, each costing an estimated $500,000 to $600,000. Deputy Minister Mark Okraku Mantey later stated that the initial funding was insufficient due to rising market prices and that additional funds were allocated to other projects that did not materialize, with no further explanation provided to the creative arts sector.
These issues, among others that FOCAP, warrant investigation by the current Minister and Deputy to bring the creative arts sector up to speed. We also urge the Ministry to enhance its communication efforts to ensure effective information flow.
Find attached the official press release;
Kojo Preko Dankwa
President FOCAP
0550077040
Mel Kwesi Davis
Vice President
FOCAP
0205422156
Enock Agyepong
Vice President, Research, FOCAP
0244712136
