January 2019

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 30 January, 2019 POTROG will deliver his State of the Nation’s address (SON’s address) to Ghana’s parliament soon – time for action. No; not time for action as in speech writing, but time to show he is serious. ‘I will build one factory in each district….I will give each constituency one million dollars….I will establish a Zongo Development Fund…..I will build Day secondary schools in each district…..Try me also…..’ The above quotes are mine – my own paraphrase of what POTROG said. Politics is for those who are ready; those who can punch and take punches, and takeRead More →

By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 28 January, 2019 The Grand Lodge of Ghana (GLOG) is exactly 10 years old. Congratulations to all Freemasons in Ghana. To mark the occasion, the media was invited to the press launch at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City Accra on January 24. The moral imperative of public relations excellence requires of us to subject that meeting to the same standards and intellectual analysis that we give to all public relations events. ‘What do you understand by ritual?,’ the Grand Master (GM) asked a questioner for clarification. ‘Sacrifices….blood sacrifices,’ came the reply. It was an excellent question from theRead More →

By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 25 January, 2019 Let’s make this simple – POTROG is head of state and head of government of the Republic of Ghana. Shall we add ‘…as by law established’? On Monday 16 July, 2018, the Bank of Ghana (BOG) announced the cancellation of the purchase of ADB Bank by some fraudsters wearing corporate masks. They are all those professionals hiding behind Belstar Capital Ltd., Starmount Development Co., EDC Investments Ltd., and SIC Financial Services Ltd. In the Ghana Football Association (GFA) scandal, Amanda Clinton, lawyer for the GFA rightfully argued that GFA should not be dissolved. Her argument wasRead More →

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 23 January, 2019 In public relations management, anniversary gifts are very important; they mark out your organisation for its heritage and tradition. If you do not know how to do it, just ask from those who do know; never do something – anything, to represent something; it will damage your reputation and brand image or at the very least, not enhance it. Gifts show generosity, an upwelling of gratitude from the human heart. They do not have to be expensive. The word token has come to represent the intention behind your gift, BUT does not mean buy somethingRead More →

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 21 January, 2019   Ghanaian Journalist Ahmed Hussein-Suale  was on January 16 shot and killed in cold blood – in Accra. May the Almighty Allah – Master of the Day of Judgment, have mercy on his soul and grant him eternal rest. Those who committed this barbaric act will surely face divine justice even if they escape thorough investigation and legal punishment. Now what is left but to continue the fight – speaking truth to power. Sometimes it is good to wear the mask, especially in societies were corruption is deep and prevalent. The mask has its placeRead More →

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 18 January, 2019 A journalist can never be idle; there will always be some work to do, some story to cover. ‘Everybody wants a job, but no one says there is no work to do,’ is another unforgettable one from my mentor. So whilst hanging out – perched at quite a height at the posh Airport City Accra, I was drawn to billowing and beckoning smoke from behind some walls. ‘These must be chop bars I surmised,’ of course I know my city so well. Local restaurants aka chop bars often burn firewood on three-legged clay stoves fromRead More →

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 16 January, 2019 Nana Appiah Mensah, aka NAM 1 has operated a Ponzi scheme and is in trouble together with his employees. What is there to defend about this shameful unethical conduct? ‘He who defends everything defends nothing,’ said Frederick the Great (FREDERIKUS). Long before Frederikus, philosophical enquiries into all matters which the human mind can ponder have been debated and sound ethical judgements given. But here we are in Ghana, playing political football or spinning the subject of legal and ethical breaches into obfuscation. When are we going to join the league of nations that are serious;Read More →

  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 illegalRead More →

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 11 January, 2019 Otis Sanford, a professor, writer and political analyst for forty years was this week named 2018 Communicator of the Year by the Memphis Chapter of Public Relations Society of America. Sanford began his professional journalism career at The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi. In August 1977, he covered the death of pop musician Elvis Presley. Sanford’s long career as a practising journalist and editor was enhanced by his work as a university professor. He is a recognised speaker on ethics. In short writing is the name of Sandford’s game; he is not our typical Ghanaian socialRead More →

  By Isaac Ato MENSAH Accra – 9 January, 2019 The Registrar-General (RG) of the Republic of Ghana will de-register some one million organisations this April, that is, if the laws are to be complied with. But the RG’s department itself does not follow the laws of the land. For the ordinary folk who want to register an organisation, you get to the RG’s in Accra opposite Ghana News Agency and you are directed to a secretarial posse behind the wall of the RG’s for assistance. ‘Do you have an auditor?,’ is a usual question when you get to those private secretaries with the inscriptionRead More →