Gabby OKyere Darko Writes On Ghana’s Creative Industry

A high ranking member of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and Founding member of political think tank Danquah Institute, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko has expressed his disappointment with some Ghanaian movies.

Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, who is also a confidante of President Nana Addo Dankwa-Akufo Addo, says he felt disheartened after watching 10 random Ghanaian movies.

“I took my time to watch randomly ten Ghanaian movies and never felt so disappointed,” he said in a Facebook post.

According to him, after watching the movies, “It brought home to me one major deficiency in our development. The apparent lack of deliberate consciousness on the part of the creative industry in the development conversation.”

Mr Otchere-Darko noted that “The presence of the creative industry appears at best peripheral in Ghana’s development narrative.”

He was worried that “Our movies, our songs, our arts, by and large, do not impactfully plug into a greater development agenda.”

Using Hollywood as an example, Mr Otchere-Darko noted that, “for the best part of a century, has been deliberately used by America to push successfully American cultural ‘supremacy’ agenda; it has been used as an effective instrument of military or economic indoctrination.”

He quizzed “what has been the underlying consciousness behind our creative industry, if any?”

“What role, for instance, can actors in the creative industry play to define and realize this whole important concept of moving Ghana Beyond Aid?”

In concluding, he urged that “We must elevate consciousness in Ghana if we are serious about winning.”

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I took my time to watch randomly ten Ghanaian movies and never felt so disappointed. It brought home to me one major deficiency in our development. The apparent lack of deliberate consciousness on the part of the creative industry in the development conversation.

The presence of the creative industry appears at best peripheral in Ghana’s development narrative. Our movies, our songs, our arts, by and large, do not impactfully plug into a greater development agenda.

Hollywood, for the best part of a century, has been deliberately used by America to push successfully American cultural “supremacy” agenda; it has been used as an effective instrument of military or economic indoctrination. But, what has been the underlying consciousness behind our creative industry, if any?

What role, for instance, can actors in the creative industry play to define and realize this whole important concept of moving Ghana Beyond Aid? We must elevate consciousness in Ghana if we are serious about winning.