WORK HARD TO REBUILD SHIPYARD

Page 7: Daily Graphic, May 18, 2012 MANY individuals and organisations have welcomed the decision by the government to resume total control of the Tema Shipyard and Drydock with its re-acquisition of the 60 per cent shareholding of Penang Shipbuilding Company (PSC) of Malaysia. Without doubt, the drydock remains a strategic national asset with great potential for not only the growth and development of the country but also job creation and skills acquisition in this period of increased maritime traffic in an emerging oil and gas business environment. After all, poverty alleviation is all about wealth and job creation. We acknowledge the contribution and vigilance of the workers all these years when the Malaysian firm took majority shares and the management of the company. During that period, there were a number of complaints, protests and management and staff lock-outs. It is, therefore, not surprising that many Ghanaians and labour organisations have commended the government for taking the bold decision to take over majority shares and the management of the company. But we believe re-possessing the company is only one of several measures needed to transform it into one of the best in the sub-region and beyond. While the burden of recapitalising, resourcing and putting in place an efficient management for the company will be on the government, the workers and allied agencies that do business with the drydock also have a crucial role to play to turn around the fortunes of the company. We need no reminder that most state-owned enterprises had to go the path of divestiture because they had become liabilities to the state. They became liabilities because both management and workers adopted I-don’t-care attitudes or ‘this is government property’ stance and could not be bothered by happenings in those firms. As of now, we still have this syndrome in most of our public institutions where workers and management alike care less. And yet, they will be the first to jump at the government for increase in wages and improvement in other conditions of service. The Daily Graphic thinks that this type of business-as-usual attitude should not find its way into the company. We admonish those to be engaged to manage the company to move beyond vigilance and adopt a positive attitude to work to help turn around its fortunes. We believe the company can achieve its strategic objectives if all stakeholders decide to adopt a new work ethic. The company has come far in its life cycle and we believe it is about time it attained the vision for which it was set up by Dr Kwame Nkrumah. The Daily Graphic commends the government for the bold decision it took to re-possess the company. Our prayer is that for once let us demonstrate to the whole world that state enterprises have potential for growth, wealth and job creation.