By Ernest Nutsugah
Accra, March 17, GNA – The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has urged business leaders both in public and private sectors to remain ethical as they pursue economic interests and strive to transform society.
Speaking at the Ghana Business Leaders’ Conclave at the University of Professional Studies, Accra on Friday, he noted that leadership in all spheres must be guided by integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, respect, and responsibility.
Sustainable business, he said, were built on trust, innovation, technology, creativity, and bold leadership, stressing that “a leader without ethics may achieve temporary success but will never build a lasting institution.”
The Ghana Business Leaders’ Conclave, convened by Otumfuo Osei Tutu, sought to bridge traditional wisdom and contemporary business strategy, focusing on the long-term viability of the Ghanaian corporate landscape.
It was on the theme: “Leading with Integrity: Negotiation, Mediation and Ethical Governance for Business Sustainability.”
Emphasising key pillars of leadership, the King urged political leaders to continue creating the right environment and policy framework for economic and social stability.
“There’s no true measure of our national progress than the state of our economy…After almost 70 years, the lesson is clear; we’ve had enough of talk, Ghana must now become a nation of builders,” he said.
“We must move from political rhetoric to building businesses, we must move from slogans to production. We must move from lamentation to enterprise. We must move from dependency to value creation.”
The Asantehene expressed concern about the overindulgence in partisan politics, and called on citizens, entrepreneurs, professionals and institutions to continue to innovate, create jobs, and to add value to the country’s natural resources.
“In peace and in war, nations are as great as the leaders who not only fly the flag, but also create and sustain the building blocks on which the strength of the nation depends,” he said.
“Democracy changes governments, but trust sustains societies. We may take leaders through the ballot box, but if we do not rebuild confidence in one another, we shall weaken the very foundation on which the Republic rests.”
“The decade before us must be the decade of business, in which all our energies are directed towards building a strong, resilient, ethical and sustainable economy.”
The traditional ruler expressed confidence that emerging leaders would stay committed to doing the right things in the right manner to achieve the right outcomes.
“The honest business leader does not cut corners…If a manager teaches workers to cut corners for the business, one day those same workers will cut corners for themselves. On the other hand, when a manager injects honesty into decision-making, it becomes the culture of the enterprise,” he said.
“…A person who has risen to the office of Chief Executive must not assume that wisdom begins and ends with him,” he said.
“If he cannot relate respectfully to his colleagues, his board, his staff, and his customers, then he does not have the skill set needed to create a sustainable business.”
The UPSA Alumnus described the University as a symbol of Ghanaian entrepreneurship, professionalism, and scholarship, and advised students to be ambitious but principled.
“Do not admire wealth without asking how it was made. Do not admire power without asking how it was used. Do not admire success without asking who suffered for it…Measure greatness by honesty, service, discipline, and the ability to do right when wrongdoing is profitable,” he stated.
“…We must tell the world that Ghana is open for business. But we must also tell ourselves that business without integrity is danger. Leadership without humility is arrogance, and prosperity without ethics is fragile.”
Management of the University said the Business Conclave would become an annual forum for emerging business and captains of industry to build leadership that would serve generations.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe
Reporter: Ernest Nutsugah
email: [email protected]
