Leading member of NPP, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko and business mogul, McDan
The Executive Chairman of McDan Group, Dr Daniel McKorley, has stated that businessmen must speak out against societal issues that hinder the growth of their businesses.
According to him, inasmuch as the New Patriotic Party (NPP) played a role to boost his businesses, it is the duty of the business community to keep politicians on their toes for right policies to be implemented.
His comment comes after a leading member of the NPP, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, had earlier slammed him for saying policies the previous government rolled out did not benefit the private sector.
Speaking on Oyerepa FM Breakfast Morning Show with Kwesi Parker-Wilson, on Friday, March 28, 2025, and monitored by GhanaWeb Business, McDan said, “We need to criticise what is wrong. We have to help politicians to put out the right policies.”
The business mogul asserted that, “Gabby twisted what I said…on the panel, the host posed a question to me, ‘McDan, you are a big entrepreneur, has government policies helped your business?’ And I said no, I spoke and referred that in my 30 years of being an entrepreneur, government policies have never helped the private sector. I don’t know if he really listened. I talked about some ministers who are not really listening to the private sector and businessmen.
“So, he just picked out of context that I was taking against the NPP government. It is government that has to help the private sector. If a policy is not good for the sector or the NPP had helped, should I be selfish? I can’t be selfish not to talk about the right thing.”
On November 7, 2024, Dr McKorley, while speaking at the Ghana CEO Presidential Gala Dinner, stated that the private sector has not benefited from government policies, which he believes stifle local businesses and create an unfavourable environment.
He urged policymakers to view local businesses as valuable partners and create conditions that foster growth, entrepreneurship, and job creation, similar to approaches in other nations.
In response to Dr McKorley’s claims, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko expressed shock that the business mogul, who, according to him, has largely benefited from the former government’s full support in owning Africa’s largest salt concession, would make such a statement.
Gabby argued that the NPP government has created an environment conducive to business growth, citing McDan’s Songor salt project as an example.
He highlighted that the salt concession has the potential to generate $2 billion annually in salt production.
SA/AE
