Kwesi Pratt Jnr., the outspoken Managing Editor of Insight newspaper, has commended President Nana Akufo-Addo for urging workers to better develop their attitude and mentality towards work – according to local media.
Whilst delivering a speech on Monday to mark the May Day celebrations at the Independence Square in Accra, President Akufo-Addo advised that if the nation is “going to make the changes [that] we all want, then we have to start with a change in attitude to work.”
The President then continued to highlight the issues that he believes surrounds the Ghanaian working mentality today: “We arrive at work late and then spend the first hour in prayer; we are clock watchers and leave in the middle of critical work, because it is the official closing time. Everything comes to a stop when it rains and we seem to expect the rest of the world also to stop.”
Commenting on the President’s speech on Peace FM’s ‘Kokrokoo’, Kwesi Pratt held strongly that the President had “hit the nail right on the head” with his comments on workers.
Claiming that some workers had indeed developed “lackadaisical attitudes” and also engage in “wasteful activities that erode the country of productivity”.
Pratt then condemned lateness to work, and the using of working hours to pray or embark on spiritual exercises.
He wondered how workers could gather at their workplaces praying for an hour, or hours, when they were supposed to be in their offices working for productivity – Ghana Web reported.
“There’s a place of work where from morning, when they’re expected to start work, they will be doing morning devotion for one hour.
“They will be clapping hands and singing hallelujah for one hour, in the afternoon too – afternoon prayers – another one hour and when they are about to close too – closing prayers – one hour. So, they take three hours out of the eight hours we need to work.”
He further called on employers not to compel their employees to undergo such spiritual routines because not all employees may be willing to, and also called on them to stop wasting productive hours – according to local media.
He also lambasted employers and the government for failing to provide the necessary logistics to their employees to ease their workload.
From the President’s comments it is clear that the government are looking to reorient workers minds in Ghana in their attitudes towards the working day, and their attitude to religion in the work place.
