There’s no cartel in MUSIGA —Bessa Simons

TWO former presidential aspirants of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), Gyedu Blay Ambolley and Ras Appiah Caleb-Levi, have described MUSIGA as being ran like a ‘cartel’ where presidents groom their allies to succeed them when they leave office.

They claim the special succession plan started with the tenure of Diana Hopeson, who handed over to Bice Osei Kuffour aka Obour, and now the mandate has fallen on Bessa Simons, who they assert are from the same ‘camp’.

While Ambolley has been making his accusations over the years, Ras Appiah Caleb-Levi reechoed similar sentiments after he lost the presidential bid to Bessa Simons at the recently held elections, saying MUSIGA executives don’t allow ‘outsiders’ to be at the helm of affairs.

However, speaking in an interview with Graphic Showbiz on Tuesday, October 24 after the swearing-in of the newly elected executives at the Accra Tourism Information Centre, Accra, the new president of MUSIGA, Bessa Simons, said there was no iota of truth in that.

“MUSIGA is not a cartel and has never been one. We all campaigned for votes and based on our manifestos, we were voted into power. Just like I campaigned to be president, I believe the previous presidents also solicited votes and based on what they had to offer, they were voted into office.

“It will be wrong for anyone to sit there and say that MUSIGA is a cartel. Our elections have always been a free and fair one. If one doesn’t win an election, there is no need for anyone to say anything bad about the union,” he told Graphic Showbiz.