I have political ambitions— Matilda Asare

Top Kumawood actress, Matilda Asare, has revealed that in the not-too-distant future, she will be heading to Parliament to join the nation’s lawmakers as a Member of Parliament and will proceed to a higher political appointment from there.

Matilda disclosed this in an interview with Graphic Showbiz on Friday, May 8 when she talked about politics and the make-believe industry which seems to be wobbling on its knees.

According to her, sometimes people were a bit skeptical when showbiz players turned to politics, but she believed there was nothing wrong with that.

“It is not bad to do politics as an actress or showbiz person, but it depends on your ambition. I have a political ambition; I want to go to Parliament in the future and push further. There is no point meddling in politics if you have no political ambition,” she said.

She added that the Akufo-Addo administration was on course as far as the promises it made to the creative industry were concerned, adding: “It may not have fulfilled every single promise, but I can confidently say that it is on course.”

Away from politics, the interview delved into the dwindling fortunes of the local movie industry and Matilda conceded that it had taken a downward turn.

“When I joined the industry about 15 years ago, it wasn’t like this. Back then, we used to do movies on CDs for sale globally. That has changed; nobody buys CDs any longer.

“Our leaders would have to adapt to the change; when time changes, you also change. The coronavirus disease has also destroyed things, there is no doubt about that.

“Again, there were no laws to guide the industry and piracy was killing us. Now that the National Film Authority has been put in place, it has to perform its role effectively so that we can have our Film Bill in place,” she said.

Matilda was of the opinion that when it came to content on television, there should be 70 per cent local content and 30 per cent foreign.

“Telenovelas are being shown all over the place; it is very bad and certainly doesn’t augur well for our local movie industry,” she said.

Matilda had a few suggestions as to how the movie industry could bounce back.

“We need to market our movies well and use all available platforms. Our marketing strategy must be apt. We can also appeal to investors to invest in our movies, as well as individuals,” she added.

Matilda, who doubles as a producer, was supposed to premiere her latest movie: Heroes of Africa, on April 11, this year, but had to postpone it until further notice because of the pandemic.

Finally, before leaving us, Matilda expressed her grief on the passing of her colleague actor, Bishop Bernard Nyarko.

“When he was sick, I used to talk with him. I was very close to him. I am still in shock. I did all I could to support him when he was sick and I am really disturbed by the news of his death.

“The last time I spoke with him, he said he was getting better and I was happy. I least expected that he would leave us so soon. I am really hurt. I pray that he finds rest in the bosom of his Maker,” she concluded.