President and Founder of IMANI Africa Franklin Cudjoe has described the immediate past Member of Parliament for New Juaben South as a fine brain.

According to him, Mark Osei Assibey has the knowledge and the gravitas to contribute to the successful handling of the nation’s finances.

To Franklin Cudjoe, with Mark Osei Assibey’s background in international monetary economic policy, he could be paired, effortlessly with investment bankers, Charles Adu Boahen and Ken Ofori-Atta at the Finance Ministry.

He indicated that “working upclose with him and his Finance Committee on Cocoa issues gives me comfort that he is a rare brain that shouldn’t be wasted”.

Read his full statement here:

Koforidua over the weekend- I was in the city that nurtured my Sixth Form education. The city has been keeping pace with the often coquetry description of its female indigenes- ‘Koforidua flowers’- ever beautiful and tempting. Nostalgia aside, I speak of the wonderful facelift Koforidua and its immediate environs has undergone. While the collective inputs of Kofcity citizens did matter, one cannot overlook the legislative influence and contributions of the former MP for New Juaben South, Dr. Mark Assibey-Yeboah

Mark, had an illustrious parliamentary service in the 6th and 7th Parliaments, rising to become Chairman of one of the most influential committees, the Finance Committee. And while his parliamentary career was crudely cut short ( at least for now) by orwelian internal politics, Mark has the knowledge and the gravitas to contribute to the successful handling of our nation’s finances.

With his background in international monetary economic policy, he could be paired, effortlessly with investment bankers, Charles Adu Boahen and Ken Ofori-Atta at the Finance Ministry. IMANI had reservations about some aspects of his stewardship, but working upclose with him and his Finance Committee on Cocoa issues gives me comfort that he is a rare brain that shouldn’t be wasted.

When IMANI had the opportunity to present its groundbreaking report on exploring revenue management and producer pricing mechanism within Ghana’s cocoa sector to Mark and his Finance Committee of Parliament, it was an engaging discourse, with very critical questions asked by members of the committee. Mark himself had excellent rebuttals for IMANI researchers on the possibility of cocoa sector revenue management regulation, profit maximisation, the Stabilization Fund and the Akuafo Cheque System.

Perhaps, Mark’s formidable knowledge of cocoa matters has its roots in the city he loved to represent, Kofcity. Koforidua was founded in 1875 with cocoa as one of its revenue earners. It still is and I still love Koforidua! By the way, I had seen wonderful ‘flowers’ in New Juaben Secondary School during my Sixth Form days in Pojoss. Just seen.

NB: Photo taken in February 2020 when IMANI researchers met with the Finance Committee in Parliament to discuss cocoa.