Veep Charges DIC Board to Reactivate GIHOC factories

Vice-President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, has entreated members of the Board of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC) to ensure the early rehabilitation and reactivation of factories such as the GIH0C Fibre Manufacturing Company; the GIHOC Shoe Factory, among others.

He also challenged them to ensure that the processes of divestiture passed the test of, probity, accountability, prudence and transparency, explaining that the benefits of a successful divestiture were substantial to national development efforts.

The Vice-President made the call when he inaugurated the DIC Board at the Castle, Osu in Accra yesterday.

The board, which is chaired by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Dr Kwabena Duffour, has Mr Stephen Amoanor Kwao, the Minister of Manpower, Youth and Employment; Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu, the Attotney-General and Justice Minister, and Ms Hannah Tetteh, Minister of Trade and Industry, as members.

The others are Dr Odame Larbi, Executive Secretary of the Lands Commission; Mr Kofi Asamoah, Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Lt Col Edward Fiawoo, the representative of the Ghana Armed Forces; Mr Yao Klinogo, the Executive Chairman of the State Enterprises Commission, and Mr Asakkya Agambila, the Executive Secretary of DIC.

The Vice-President said the divestiture programme, which commenced in 1998, had come a long way, adding that while the divestiture of some entities such as Golden Tulip, La Palm Royal beach Hotel, Tema Steelworks, Ghana Rubber Estate limited, among others, had been an encouraging testimony to the programme, the same could not be said of others.

“Your board can now be said to have the benefit of hindsight. You are expected to avoid the mistakes of the past by ensuring that your decisions are well considered. In particular, you must remember that the assets which you may be called upon to divest are the collective property of the government and the people of Ghana, “he said.

He said it was expect that the DIC would endeavour to ensure that all outstanding divestiture receipts were recovered and that proper, legal due diligence was conducted to minimize the number of legal suits by workers and landowners which were presently before the law courts.

Dr Duffour, for his part, expressed delight at the "huge responsibility placed on us", adding. "We have accepted the challenge to work for the benefit of the public to help reduce poverty among the people."

Source: Daily Graphic