Group against Aburi Gardens’ ‘privatisation’

The Socialist Forum of Ghana (SFG) has expressed its disappointment about reports that government was considering the privatisation of the Aburi Gardens.
The privatisation of the Aburi Gardens, the SFG noted was only part of the stern attempt to deprive the state of vital assets, which began after the overthrow of the Dr. Kwame Nkrumah’s government.
A statement issued in Accra and signed by Kwesi Pratt Junior, on behalf of the Convenor, noted that within two decades, Ghana has sold out more than 300 of its factories and productive ventures to ”predatory forces” in the colonial metropolis with dire consequences for the Ghanaians people.
He mentioned the State Fishing Corporation, the Black Star Line, the Kumasi Shoe Factory, the Ghana National Trading Corporation (GNTC), Electronic Manufacturing concerns, hotels and public transport companies as some of the enterprises privatised.
“This was intensified under the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) era on the marching orders of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank”, the statement said.
The statement said reckless privatisations had contributed immensely to Ghana’s dependence on the colonial metropolis and far eastern countries for the supply of the needs of the people.
The statement warned that manufacturing was virtually collapsing and unemployment was also soaring in Ghana and therefore, there could be no justification for the privatisation of the Aburi Gardens which was established in 1890 under the colonial administration and had become a major tourist attraction for Ghana.
“It is baseless to say privatisation automatically brings about greater efficiency and qualitative improvement in the management of enterprises”, the statement said.
The SFG noted that most of the enterprises privatised on the whim of neo-liberal institutions had collapsed or become major drains on the resources of the state while the was also stuffed with examples of failed private enterprises.
The SFC would therefore reject the attempt by government to disguise the privatisation of the Aburi Gardens under the vague concept of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) and called on government to appointment a competent management team to revamp it.
Source: GNA