Entertainer and Communications professional, George Quaye, has made a U-turn on accusations levelled at the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) that the Creative Arts Industry received no support after activities in the sector ground to a halt with the outbreak of COVID-19 as a result of measures outlined by government to fight the pandemic.
The restriction imposed – i.e. the number of people who should attend events, closure of beaches, night clubs, cinemas among others – rendered many players in the sector jobless, and some are yet to recover.
The actor took to social media to express his disappointment at the NBSSI and lashed out at the government over the delay in providing a stimulus package for players in the creative arts sector.
But it turned out that most individuals within the sector had received their package on the blindside of the entertainer, who had accused government through the National Board of Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) of making empty promises to win votes.
“Until this evening, I was under the impression (based on conversations with some industry players) that very few had received their loans. Imagine my utter shock when I discovered this evening that, actually, many have received theirs, chopped it, and joined the rest of us who are yet to receive ours to ‘agitate’! Why?” he said in a Facebook post.
In an earlier post that is no longer available on his timeline, Mr. Quaye was talking about how bad the sector had been hit and went on to hit out at the NBSSI for delaying the disbursement.
“Is it the case that the money wasn’t enough, and after disbursement, to a rather small percentage of the sector it ran out?” he queried.
In his remorseful statement, he questioned the intention of people who received their loans and “still pretend you haven’t gotten a pesewa”.
“Is it to make the government look bad? Or is it just ingratitude?” he asked.
He said, “Your honesty or acknowledgement is enough to give the next person some level of hope that the funds will come eventually”.
The NBSSI is however yet to make clear the amount of stimulus it has provided to the creative arts sector.
