Veteran highlife musician, Ben Brako, has expressed displeasure at the reassignment of the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Catherine Afeku.
His comment comes on the back of the removal of minister to the Office of the Senior Minister.
According to the statement from the Presidency, the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Barbara Oteng Gyasi, who is also the Member of Parliament for the Prestea Huni-Valley constituency, will be replacing Catherine Afeku at the Ministry.
But speaking to Ben Brako on the sidelines of the Stanbic Jazz Festival, he said the reshuffle is “totally irrelevant to the creative arts. Even if you get a good person in that position there are still government policies about the creative arts that have been overlooked. We have serious issues that show the kind of governance that we have.”
He was of the opinion that government’s priorities for the Creative Arts were misguided and backward in nature and added that the time spent on such bureaucratic decisions could be spent tackling the fundamental issues that would help grow the industry.
“Government cannot relate to our people in their own language. They cannot even change the national anthem to a language that people understand to be empathetic with the nation. Ask the people on the streets, ninety percent cannot sing the anthem. Are we truly independent, All our leaders are warped. They want to be European, “he told Nana Adwoa Sarkodie of Citi News.
Ben Brako is a highlife artiste noted for songs like ‘Mewie,’ ‘Yentum,’ ‘Moko Mekrom,’ ‘Etue,’ among others.
source citinewsroom.com
