By Isaac Ato MENSAH
Accra – 14 January, 2019
Political communication is a serious exercise in nation building; it must be done professionally with various shades of opinion considered in the articles and presentations.
It must have the purpose of generating a healthy national debate on all issues.
But of course practitioners will always have a client, a hirer, and so they must choose their principles ahead of business and negotiate that clearly.
When cavorting with the devil, you better get a long spoon, and if possible with abonsan tawa in your pipe.
And if the politicians should ask why you have an illegal herb in your snuff, ask them why the herb is illegal.
It is important for the politicians to appreciate that you the political communicator can advocate the views of various shades of society, without necessarily belonging in either camp.
The way forward, as my mentor has always advocated is to pursue development as in the Enlightenment era through facts, evidence and reason.
That should be a good starting point.
If sound ethics which come from godly principles be your guide, and you learn to judge with candour, you should succeed.
Many a time in our part of the world, when leaders lose their power, then their lieutenants come parroting what the rest of society has always complained about.
We hope you are not that kind of political communicator?
The last time I mentioned Ghana’s English literacy rate as 15 percent, my mentor butted in: ‘I thought you will say one percent’.
I must confess it took me some seconds to process that satire.
The total literacy rate for all Ghanaian languages is 34 percent.
If we want to reach our people through knowledge sharing and coherent arguments laid out in books therefore, we have to add local language writing.
But what is our attitude to the Bureau of Ghana Languages (BGL) and propaganda, for example?
Abigail Annoh’s report for the Ghanaian Times……
‘Apart from the budget, we have been unable to translate any government document. We used to translate (the) public address of then President John Agyekum Kufour but after his era, that opportunity (ceased). Though we have in recent times written to the Information and Gender Ministries to allow us translate some of their documents, it is yet to receive approval,’ the reporter quoted Peter Essien, the boss of BGL as culled by all Africa.com on 8 January, 2019.
Now, which government is serious enough to confront this problem and solve it?
Bear in mind that at every turn they do not relinquish the opportunity to declare nationalist sentiments to the peanut gallery…..and they often confuse nationalism with patriotism!
Meanwhile, they do the barest minimum to promote and preserve our culture in the form of our languages, food, rivers, streams, lagoons and forests.
By their deeds, we surely know them.
Ethics always come to mind in the pursuit of public education….and propaganda.
So let us always remember Frederick The Great, King of Prussia.
‘He who defends everything defends nothing……it seems to me that man is made to act rather to know; the principles of things escape our most persevering searches……an educated people can easily be governed……..My principal occupation is to combat ignorance and prejudice…to enlighten minds, cultivate morality, and to make people as happy as it suits human nature, and as the means at my disposal permit’.
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