Catholic Bishop Conference cautions against “family and friends” regimes

The Catholic Bishop Conference has cautioned that governments built around only close relations without the input of other people are a recipe for disaster and should be discouraged.

President of the Conference, Most Rev. Phillip Naameh, speaking at the Annual Plenary Assembly 2022 at Donkorkrom in the Afram Plains North district of the Eastern Region, while advising members to leverage on the strength of diversity to formulate policies for members, added that is a lesson political leader must take a cue from.

“What I have said here is not only relevant for the church, but also for the government. If a particular government comes; whether NDC or NPP, and thinks that his people, his tribe has all the competencies or his clan, and ignores the others we can experience disasters,” he said.

He thereby called on political leaders to look beyond their inner circles when and draw from the competencies of people across the country in the formation of a government. According to him, only then will Ghana show “exemplary leadership”.

Most Rev. Naameh also wants the government to consult widely, including the involvement of Civil Society Organisations and opposition parties, to find a way around the economic difficulties confronting the country.

“I call on the government as a matter of necessity engage the Civil Society Organisations to improve the economic and social situations of the Country. The CSOs because of the nature of their work have knowledge and competent people on every sector of the Economy who will be more than willing to offer their expertise in the service of the nation… Also, other Political parties could be consulted on the national policies, even if they are in Opposition”, he said.